\ 


0£  CALIF.   LIBRARY,    LOS  WZEIX8 


THE  LOST  RIVER 


BY 

EDWARD  S.  ELLIS 

Author  of  "  River  and  Forest,''  "  Bear  Cavern, 
"  The  Daughter  of  the  Chieftain,"  etc.,  etc. 


WITH  FULL-PAGE  ILLUSTRATIONS 
BY  GORDON  BROWNE 


Chicago 
M.  A.  DONOHUE  &  COMPANY 


Made  in  U.  S.  A. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  I. 
FACING  NORTHWARD           .... 

PAGE 

9 

CHAPTER  II. 
A  FIND     ....... 

18 

CHAPTER  III. 

STRANGERS        ...                   . 

27 

CHAPTER  IV. 
MISSING  

36 

CHAPTER  V. 
THE  SIGNAL  FIRE      ..... 

45 

CHAPTER  VI. 
A  CLUB    

55 

CHAPTER  VII. 
AN  UNEXPECTED  PLUNGE  .... 

63 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
A  FAITHFUL  FRIEND           .... 

72 

CHAPTER  IX. 
THE  UPPER  LEVEL    ..... 

81 

CHAPTER  X. 
AN  IMPORTANT  DISCOVERY 

89 

CHAPTER  XI. 
Two  NATIVE  EXPLORERS  .... 

98 

CHAPTER  XII. 
THE  GOLDEN  CAVE  ..... 

107 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
A  SERIOUS  PROBLEM          .... 

115 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
SHIFTING  THE  DEPOSITS     .... 

124 

CHAPTER  XV. 
"COME  BACK!"          

134 

CHAPTER  XVI. 
THE  RETURN    ...... 

141 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

CONCLUSION       .         .                ... 

148 

2129839 


THE  LOST  RIVER 


CHAPTER  I 

FACING    NORTHWARD 

THE  Santa  Lucia  Mountains  are  on  the  western  coast 
of  California,  close  to  the  ocean,  in  what  is  now 
Monterey  County.  From  the  northernmost  point  to 
San  Francisco  the  distance  is  something  more  than  a 
hundred  miles.  To-day  the  region  contains  many  towns 
and  settlements,  while  an  important  railway  line  runs 
through  the  whole  county  to  the  eastward  of  the  range ; 
but  the  incidents  I  have  set  out  to  tell  you  occurred  a 
half-century  or  more  ago,  when  the  whole  region  con- 
tained only  a  few  mission  stations,  with  ranches  or 
large  farms  at  different  points,  upon  which  most  of  the 
inhabitants  were  Mexicans,  for,  as  you  know,  the  whole 
country  belonged  to  Mexico  until  it  was  ceded  to  the 
United  States  by  the  terms  of  the  Peace  of  1848. 

Dennis  Murphy,  an  Irishman,  and  Tim  Crowell,  a 
boy  of  about  thirteen,  and  his  dog  Tige,  were  wrecked 
off  the  coast  in  the  steamer  Golden  Gate  while  on  the 
way  from  the  port  of  Panama  to  San  Francisco.  The 
other  passengers  were  taken  away  by  another  steamer, 


io  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

which  came  along  soon  after;  but  Dennis  and  Tim, 
having  strayed  some  way  into  the  interior,  were  left 
behind  to  get  out  of  the  solitude  as  best  they  could. 

While  wandering  among  the  mountains  they  met  a 
veteran  miner — Jarvis  Metcalf — who  had  gone  thither 
to  look  for  a  rich  deposit  of  gold.  That  which  led 
him  to  make  this  venture  was  a  paper  given  to  him 
by  an  old  friend,  named  Covington,  just  before  he 
died,  which  paper  contained  the  drawing  of  three 
mountain  peaks,  with  a  short,  winding  stream  at  the 
base.  Could  these  landmarks  be  found,  there  would 
be  no  trouble  in  locating  the  spot  where  the  treasure 
was  said  to  exist.  The  doubt  in  the  whole  matter  lay 
in  the  fact  that  the  miner  who  made  the  drawing  and 
wrote  out  the  directions  had  been  clouded  in  his  mind 
most  of  the  time,  and  it  was  probable  that  the  whole 
thing  was  a  freak  of  his  twisted  brain. 

Be  that  as  it  may,  the  three  friends  made  diligent 
search  for  more  than  a  week  without  gaining  a 
glimpse  of  the  locality  which  was  so  clearly  fixed  in 
the  memory  of  each  that  no  need  remained  for  the 
drawing  and  directions.  It  was  agreed  among  them 
that  when  they  came  together  again  after  the  failure 
they  should  abandon  the  search  and  leave  the  country. 
We  therefore  meet  them  when  the  two  men  were 
ready  to  carry  out  the  agreement,  and  go  northward 
to  San  Francisco  and  the  "diggings." 

It  was  at  the  close  of  one  of  those  soft;  balmy 
days  which  continue  for  weeks  and  months  in  Cali- 
fornia that  the  two  men  sat  on  the  broad,  flat  rock 
outside  the  cavern,  talking  over  the  important  ques- 


FACING  NORTHWARD.  11 

tion,  while  the  boy  Tim  was  frolicking  with  Tige  a 
short  distance  away 

The  genial  Dennis  was  in  his  usual  buoyant 
spirits,  and  was  cheerful  over  the  prospect  of  soon 
meeting  Mr  Crowell,  his  employer,  and  joining  him 
in  digging  for  gold  where  there  was  no  doubt  it 
existed. 

"Here's  where  I  stop,  as  Mickey  Sweeney  said 
whin  he  walked  up  aginst  the  side  of  his  house  on  a 
dark  night,"  remarked  the  Irishman.  "It's  a  big  dis- 
app'intment,  Metcalf,  to  yersilf,  but  it  doesn't  mane 
that  ye  are  not  to  make  yer  fortune  befoore  ye  lave 
this  part  of  the  world." 

"I  am  used  to  disappointment,"  replied  his  com- 
panion, "but  I  own  that  this  is  one  of  the  most  bitter 
of  my  life.  While  I  no  longer  doubt  that  poor.  Cov- 
ington  was  under  a  delusion,  yet  we  have  the  proof 
that  there  is  gold  in  these  mountains." 

''What  might  be  that  same  proof?" 

"Those  nuggets  that  you  and  Tim  found  in  the 
streams ;  it  isn't  likely  they  are  the  only  deposits  in 
this  part  of  California." 

"It's  little  I  know  about  such  things,  as  me 
nephew  said,  whin  he  was  asked  to  spell  his  own 
name,  but  my  idaa  is  that  there  isn't  much  more  in 
these  parts;  but  while  we  push  north  we'll  kape  up 
the  hunt." 

This  brought  up  the  question  as  to  the  best  means 
of  travelling  the  distance  necessary  to  reach  San 
Francisco.  Ordinarily  there  would  not  have  been 
any  question,  for,  although  they  had  no  mules  or 


ia  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

pack-horses,  they  would  tramp  through  the  wild  re- 
gion, just  as  Metcalf  and  Covington  had  done.  It 
was  hard  work,  but  that  could  not  be  avoided,  for 
miners  soon  got  used  to  it,  and  the  prospect  did  not 
disturb  'them.  The  wreck  of  the  Golden  Gate,  how- 
ever, brought  Mr.  Crowell,  the  father  of  Tim,  into  the 
matter.  Whether  or  not  he  had  received  the  letter 
sent  from  his  eastern  home  before  the  man  and  boy 
left,  he  was  expecting  their  coming,  since  he  had  pre- 
viously directed  them  to  join  him.  It  seemed  more 
than  likely  that  he  would  come  down  from  the  dig- 
gings to  San  Francisco  to  meet  them,  since  they 
would  need  his  guidance  in  order  to  reach  the  simple 
home  he  had  provided. 

Admitting  that  he  could  not  have  known  that 
they  would  sail  on  the  Golden  Gate,  he  must  have 
guessed  pretty  nearly  the  time  when  they  were  due 
at  the  port.  The  news  of  the  loss  of  the  steamer, 
including  a  considerable  number  of  passengers,  would 
cause  excitement  and  enquiries  that  must  bring  out 
all  the  facts.  Sooner  or  later  Mr.  Crowell  would 
learn  how  Dennis  Murphy  and  Tim  had  been  left  on 
the  coast.  What,  then,  was  he  most  likely  to  do  ? 

The  run  from  the  scene  of  the  wreck  to  San 
Francisco  could  be  made  in  ten  or  twelve  hours,  so 
that  the  tidings  had  reached  the  city  long  before.  Had 
there  been  a  score  or  more  of  passengers  "marooned," 
a  vessel  would  have  been  sent  to  bring  them  off;  but 
if  a  rescue  was  to  be  made  of  a  single  man  and  boy, 
in  whom  only  one  miner  was  interested,  such  rescue 
would  have  to  be  attempted  by  that  miner  himself. 


FACING  NORTHWARD.  13 

The  steamer  going  south  to  meet  the  passengers  from 
the  other  side  of  the  Isthmus  might  be  instructed  to 
look  out  for  the  couple;  but  it  was  likely  to  pass  the 
point  in  the  night,  and  it  was  not  probable  the  captain 
would  give  himself  much  concern  for  two  persons. 

It  was  the  presence  of  Tim  which  made  the  real 
difficulty.  Had  Dennis  alone  been  abandoned,  he 
would  have  been  left  to  take  care  of  himself  as  best 
he  could ;  but  a  parent  in  the  situation  of  Mr.  Crowell 
must  feel  great  anxiety.  He  would  have  learned  that 
when  the  two  went  ashore  neither  had  any  firearms, 
and  he  knew  that  Dennis  was  ignorant  of  their  use. 
In  such  circumstances  the  tramp  northward,  mostly 
through  the  mountains,  must  prove  dangerous  to  both, 
unless  they  should  take  refuge  at  some  of  the  mis- 
sions or  ranches  scattered  throughout  the  region. 

You  will  see,  therefore,  how  it  was  that  the  two 
men,  sitting  in  front  of  the  cavern  home  as  night 
closed  in,  speculated  and  guessed  over  the  right  thing 
to  do  without  being  sure  that  they  had  decided  upon 
it.  Their  decision  may  be  summed  up  in  the  words  of 
the  miner : 

''We  are  in  plain  sight  of  the  Pacific.  To-mor- 
row we'll  climb  to  one  of  the  highest  points  near  us 
and  learn  the  outlook.  If  your  employer  has  come 
down  with  a  ship  to  look  for  you,  he  arrived  several 
days  ago." 

"And  by  the  same  token  may  have  grown  weary 
and  gone  back." 

"That  isn't  likely,  when  he  is  searching  for  his 
only  child.  Not  seeing  you  on  the  shore,  he  will 


14  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

cruise  up  and  down,  not  knowing  the  exact  spot 
where  the  Golden  Gate  went  down.  He  may  land 
and  set  out  to  hunt  you  up.  If  we  see  nothing  of 
any  sail,  it  will  be  safe  to  believe  he  has  decided  to 
wait  in  San  Francisco  for  you  to  come  to  him." 

On  the  morrow,  therefore,  after  their  morning 
meal,  all  three  spent  an  hour  in  climbing  an  elevation 
that  rose  several  hundred  feet  above  that  of  their 
cavern  home.  There  they  scrutinised  every  part  of 
the  ocean  that  lay  in  their  field  of  vision.  They  could 
see  even  the  snowy  foam  on  the  beach  as  the  long, 
heavy  swell  rolled  up  the  shingle  or  dashed  against 
the  bluffs ;  but  the  shimmering  expanse  which 
stretched  away  until  the  dividing  line  between  it  and 
the  sky  could  not  be  traced  showed  no  steamer  with 
its  trail  of  vapour  streaming  along  the  sky,  nor  cloud- 
like  sail  of  vessel  in  the  distance.  That  mighty  ex- 
panse looked  as  it  must  have  looked  to  Balboa,  nearly 
four  centuries  before,  when  he  climbed  the  peaks  of 
Darien  and  peered  over  the  sweep  of  the  South  Sea, 
for  there  was  not  the  sign  of  life  visible  anywhere. 

You  who  are  accustomed  to  looking  upon  the 
Atlantic,  with  its  myriad  shipping,  without  failing 
to  see  more  or  less  sail,  in  whatever  direction  you 
turn  your  eyes,  may  not  have  thought  how  different  it 
is  on  the  Pacific,  the  mightiest  ocean  of  the  globe. 
I  have  heard  navigators  say  that  leaving  San 
Francisco  they  have  crossed  almost  the  entire  ocean 
without  once  seeing  a  single  sail.  This  being  the 
case  to-day,  you  can  understand  how  lonely  that  sheet 
of  water  must  have  been  throughout  most  of  its  ex- 


FACING  NORTHWARD.  15 

tent  a  half-century  ago.  Inasmuch,  however,  as 
steamers  and  vessels  made  many  voyages  to  and  from 
San  Francisco  during  the  gold  excitement,  there  was 
reason  to  look  for  a  chance  of  being  taken  off  from 
almost  any  point  of  the  coast  south  of  the  port. 

But,  as  I  have  said,  not  the  first  glimmer  of  a  sail 
caught  their  eyes,  and  Dennis  and  Metcalf  agreed 
that  the  right  plan  was  to  push  northward  without  any 
thought  of  being  rescued  by  a  friendly  ship  or  steamer. 
Accordingly,  they  descended  from  the  elevation  and 
prepared  for  their  long  tramp. 

Now  it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  our  friends  had 
many  small  matters  which  could  not  be  neglected.  The 
only  luggage  they  carried  beside  their  guns  and  two 
blankets  consisted  of  a  few  articles,  such  as  combs  and 
toothbrushes,  that  took  up  little  room  in  their  pockets. 
Dennis  and  Tim  were  provided  each  with  a  new  and 
good  suit  of  clothes,  but  in  their  hasty  leaving  of  the 
sinking  steamer  they  brought  no  underclothing  with 
them.  The  garments  of  Metcalf  were  worn  and 
shabby,  but  would  answer  for  a  long  time  to  come. 
Cleanliness  demanded  that  all  should  give  attention 
to  the  clothes  worn  next  to  the  body,  as  in  truth  they 
ought  to  have  been  looked  after  before. 

So  it  was  agreed  that  these  should  be  washed  as 
thoroughly  as  was  possible  without  the  aid  of  soap. 
The  party  made  their  way  to  the  side  of  the  small 
lake  or  pond  which  had  furnished  them  with  fish, 
stripped  off,  and  did  their  duty.  When  the  garments 
were  spread  on  the  ground  and  rocks  to  dry  in  the 
sun,  it  would  have  been  a  waste  of  time  to  sit  around 


16  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

in  their  blankets  and  outer  clothing,  and  all  three 
plunged  into  the  water  for  a  swim.  Naturally  Tim 
was  the  first.  Making  sure  that  the  water  was  deep, 
he  took  a  running  leap,  and  as  he  splashed  into  the 
lake  went  down  out  of  sight,  his  head  quickly  re- 
appearing. As  he  came  up  he  emitted  such  a  yell 
as  only  a  boy  is  capable  of,  and  scrambled  frantically 
for  shore.  Tige,  who  was  watching,  sprang  in  after 
him  and  seized  him  by  the  hair  of  his  head. 

"What's  the  matter  wid  ye?"  called  Dennis,  who 
stood  with  Metcalf  by  the  edge,  both  laughing,  for 
they  knew  what  the  trouble  was. 

"It's  cold  enough  to  freeze  me  to  death,"  was  the 
gasping  reply,  while  the  youngster  was  trying  to  fight 
off  Tige,  who  would  not  let  go. 

"I  think  I  obsarve  icicles  hanging  from  yer  nose; 
but  what's  the  odds,  as  Tim  O'Shaughnessy  said 
whin  he  fell  down  the  cellar,  thinking  he  was  going 
upstairs?  Ye  have  no  sporting  blood  in  ye,  if  ye 
mind  a  thing  like  that." 

But  Tim  was  no  sooner  ashore  than  he  shook  off 
Tige,  or,  rather,  the  latter  released  him,  and  the  next 
minute  all  three  and  the  dog  were  frolicking  in  the 
water,  which  certainly  was  very  cold.  When  their 
bodies  became  accustomed  to  it,  however,  they  en- 
joyed themselves  to  their  heart's  content.  After  they 
had  had  a  surfeit,  they  perched  themselves  along 
shore,  wrapped  in  their  other  clothing  and  blankets, 
and  patiently  waited  until  the  sun  had  dried  all  the 
moisture  from  their  underclothing.  Then  they  were 


FACING  NORTHWARD.  17 

ready  to  resume  the  northward  journey,  that  was  to 
be  attended  by  an  experience  of  which  not  one  of 
them  dreamed. 


CHAPTER  II 

A    FIND 

OUR  three  friends  journeyed  about  a  mile  almost  due 
north,  keeping  to  the  line  of  the  Santa  Lucia  range, 
which,  as  you  know,  runs  parallel  to  the  coast.  It  was 
the  intention  of  Metcalf  to  follow  this  course  for 
some  forty  miles  or  so  until  they  reached  the  bay 
which  indents  the  shore  above  the  present  town  of 
Salinas.  By  that  time  they  would  have  passed  one- 
third  of  the  distance  to  San  Francisco,  whence  their 
route  must  be  shaped  according  to  circumstances. 

It  was  yet  comparatively  early  in  the  day,  with 
the  same  clear,  balmy  sky  overhead  and  a  cool, 
pleasant  breeze  blowing  gently  inward  from  the 
Pacific.  They  did  not  burden  themselves  with  any- 
thing in  the  nature  of  food,  for  their  purpose  was  to 
live  off  the  country.  If  they  failed  to  bring  down  any 
game  they  had  their  fishing  lines  at  command,  and 
neither  of  the  men  felt  any  misgiving  over  the  ques- 
tion of  supplies.  It  will  be  remembered  that  the  one 
now  acting  as  guide  was  a  veteran  miner  who  had 
learned  to  "rough  it"  long  before. 

The  first  halt  was  made  upon  reaching  one  of  the 
small,  sparkling  mountain  streams  with  which  the 
region  abounded.  Metcalf  could  not  forget  one  fact: 

18 


A  FIND.  19 

gold  had  been  found  in  the  Santa  Lucia,  and,  though 
they  might  dismiss  the  fancy  of  the  one  who  had  not 
always  been  in  his  right  mind,  the  proof  already  dis- 
covered warranted  them  in  searching,  as  they  ad- 
vanced, for  the  precious  deposits.  Their  progress 
would  therefore  be  slow,  and  weeks  were  sure  to  pass 
before  arriving  at  the  rude,  primitive  town  which 
forms  the  present  metropolis  of  California. 

"We  may  as  well  have  a  look  here,"  said  the 
miner,  when  the  three  stood  side  by  side  on  the 
rocky  shore  of  the  little  stream,  with  Tige  gazing  up 
in  their  faces,  as  if  awaiting  some  such  declaration. 
"I  will  follow  the  brook  towards  the  coast,  while  you 
two  and  the  dog  go  up-stream." 

"For  how  far?"  asked  Dennis. 

"As  far  as  you  choose.  We  are  likely  to  be  within 
call  all  the  time,  and  if  anyone  discovers  anything  he 
can  fall  back  on  his  voice,  for  it's  best  to  save  the  am- 
munition till  there  is  need  to  use  it 

It  must  be  said  that,  although  the  miner  had  given 
up  his  purpose  of  groping  through  the  mountains  for 
the  landmarks  shown  on  the  paper  which  he  still 
carried  in  his  pocket,  he  was  not  wholly  without  hope. 
The  matter  was  continually  in  his  mind,  and  there 
were  times  when  he  felt  misgivings  as  to  the  wisdom 
of  his  abandonment  of  the  scheme.  He  recalled  that 
Covington's  brain  was  perfectly  clear  when  he  handed 
him  the  document,  and  beyond  doubt  it  had  been  clear 
during  most,  if  not  all,  the  weeks  he  spent  in  the  Santa 
Lucia  range.  Had  his  project  been  a  freak  of  the 
imagination,  he  ought  to  have  been  sensible  of  it  when 


20  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

the  mental  clouds  disappeared.  However,  Metcalf 
had  given  his  word  to  Dennis  Murphy,  who  he  could 
see  was  anxious  to  press  on  to  meet  his  old  friend  and 
employer.  The  decision  of  the  miner,  therefore,  was 
not  to  mention  his  doubts  to  his  companion,  but  to 
keep  steadily  ahead,  and,  in  the  meantime,  hunt  not 
for  that  which  led  the  others  to  turn  aside,  but  for 
the  guide  marks  that,  if  found,  would  point  the  way 
to  a  fortune. 

If  these  guide  marks  existed,  it  was  plain  that  they 
had  not  been  searched  for  in  the  right  locality.  It 
might  be  that  they  lay  to  the  north  of  the  spot  where 
he  had  made  his  home  for  several  weeks,  and  that 
they  might  still  be  found.  When,  therefore,  the  miner 
saw  himself  once  more  alone,  standing  on  the  side  of 
the  small  stream,  he  came  to  a  pause  and  scanned 
every  portion  of  the  field  within  his  visual  range.  To 
his  right  stretched  the  range  of  precipitous  peaks, 
broken  by  gullies,  ravines,  valleys,  depressions,  and 
elevations,  all  so  piled  and  jumbled  together  that  no 
pack  animal  would  have  been  able  to  thread  his  way 
among  them.  To  the  left,  the  face  of  the  country 
was  much  the  same,  but  far  beyond  he  could  catch 
glimpses  of  the  green  waters  of  the  Pacific,  upon 
which,  so  far  as  he  could  see,  not  a  single  sail  showed. 

But  in  making  this  survey  Metcalf  noted  some- 
thing that  interested  and  surprised  him.  To  the 
north-west,  and  no  more  than  half  a  mile  away,  a 
thin  column  of  smoke  was  climbing  into  the  clear  blue 
sky.  The  point  from  which  it  issued  was  so  hidden 
by  boulders  and  rocks  that  nothing  of  the  fire  itself 


A  FIND.  21 

could  be  seen,  but  it  was  manifest  that  someone  had 
started  the  flames,  with  no  fear  of  their  being  ob- 
served by  others. 

The  sight  opened  all  manner  of  speculation.  It 
might  be  that  a  party  of  white  men  had  invaded  the 
region,  impelled  by  the  restlessness  that  keeps  so 
many  persons  on  the  move;  and  it  was  equally  pos- 
sible that  some  of  the  Indians  who  roamed  through 
the  mountains  had  made  a  camp  in  that  spot.  The 
miner  stood  for  some  minutes  with  his  eyes  fixed  on 
the  lowest  point  of  the  column  of  vapour,  hoping  to 
see  something  that  would  enlighten  him,  and  while 
waiting  and  watching  Metcalf  asked  himself  what  he 
should  do  if  the  parties  proved  to  be  of  his  own  blood. 
It  might  and  it  might  not  be  desirable  to  have  them 
for  companions,  though  it  was  hardly  to  be  supposed 
they  were  also  heading  for  San  Francisco. 

But,  peer  as  much  as  he  might,  he  was  not  re- 
warded by  any  discovery.  He  scanned  other  parts 
of  his  field  of  vision,  and  was  unable  to  detect  any- 
thing recalling  the  picture  on  the  paper  in  his  pocket. 
Finally,  he  resumed  his  careful  descent  of  the  brook 
in  the  direction  of  the  ocean.  He  had  no  hope  of 
coming  upon  anything  in  the  nature  of  gold,  but  had 
not  moved  a  dozen  steps  when,  from  some  point  up 
the  stream,  he  heard  the  report  of  a  rifle,  followed  by 
the  shouting  of  Dennis  Murphy: 

"I've  found  it!  I've  found  it!  as  the  boy  said 
when  he  run  his  head  against  a  hornet's  nest !  Dinnis 
Murphy  is  the  luckiest  man  in  the  world !  Hooray !" 

The  amazed  miner  hurried  up-stream  towards  the 


22  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

excited  man,  wondering  what  it  could  all  mean.  In 
truth,  there  was  good  cause  for  the  emotion  of  the 
Irishman.  He  and  Tim  had  set  out  together;  but, 
coming  to  a  forking  of  the  brook,  Dennis  went  to  the 
left,  while  the  boy  and  his  dog  followed  the  right  or 
main  branch.  The  last  two  were  making  the  best 
search  they  could,  but  had  come  upon  nothing  to 
reward  them,  when  the  shoutings  of  the  Irishman  rang 
out,  and  a  moment  later  he  appeared,  reaching  the 
spot  where  Tim  stood  almost  at  the  same  moment 
with  the  wondering  Metcalf. 

Dennis  certainly  had  found  something,  for  he  held 
it  aloft  in  his  hand,  though  it  was  so  small  that  at 
first  neither  of  the  others  could  make  out  its  nature. 

Naturally,  their  belief  was  that  it  was  another  little 
nugget  of  gold. 

"You're  crazier  than  that  man  you  and  Mr.  Met- 
calf have  been  talking  about,"  said  the  puzzled  Tim, 
looking  at  the  hand  that  was  not  still  for  a  moment. 

"And  haven't  I  good  cause  to  be?"  asked  Dennis 
in  reply,  gradually  pulling  himself  together.  "Ye  may 
talk  about  finding  nuggets  of  goold  in  the  straams,  but 
I  have  beat  ye  at  that." 

"I  don't  see  how  that  can  well  be,"  replied  Met- 
calf, who  saw  that  the  interesting  object  was  of  a 
bright  yellow  colour.  "We  came  here  to  find  gold, 
and  the  greatest  success  we  can  have  is  to  find  it." 

"But  the  same  which  me  and  the  boy  pulled  from 
the  water  was  rough  goold  without  any  form.  It's 
mesilf  that  has  found  the  goold  already  coined!  I 
have  picked  up  an  eagle!" 


A  FIND.  n 

He  dropped  into  the  extended  palm  of  the  miner 
a  shining  yellow  button,  stamped  on  the  outside  with 
a  figure  of  a  spread  eagle,  thus  showing  that  it  had 
once  been  attached  to  the  uniform  of  an  American 
army  officer. 

"Don't  ye  obsarve  that  it's  a  piece  of  goold,  and. 
being  marked  with  the  picture  of  the  national  bird  of 
this  country,  it  is  the  same  as  the  coin  ye  call  an 
eagle?  I  s'pose,  since  Calif orny  has  become  the 
property  of  the  United  States,  Nature  will  try  to  hilp 
matters  by  stamping  the  goold  wid  the  picture  of  the 
eagle." 

For  the  first  time  for  days  Jarvis  Metcalf  laughed. 
The  incident  filled  him  with  mirth,  and,  holding  up  the 
button  so  that  all  could  see  it,  he  was  so  convulsed  as 
to  be  unable  to  speak  for  several  minutes.  Tim 
laughed,  too;  while  Dennis's  quizzical,  questioning 
expression  did  not  tend  to  soothe  the  merriment. 
Finally  the  miner  spoke : 

"What  a  grand  state  of  affairs  that  would  be  if 
you  were  right.  You  see  it  is  an  officer's  button,  with 
the  shank  on  the  lower  side,  ready  to  be  sewed  to  the 
coat  of  the  one  who  lost  it.  It  has  the  spread  eagle 
on  the  other  side;  but  the  trouble  about  it,  Dennis,  is 
that  it  doesn't  contain  a  particle  of  gold." 

"What  makes  ye  so  sartin  of  that?" 

"Although  the  metal  is  bright,  there  is  a  tarnish 
on  the  one  side,  which  gold  never  shows;  that 
precious  metal  has  no  odour,  as  you  know,  while  you 
can  readily  detect  the  smell  of  brass  in  this.  There 
are  such  things  as  gold  buttons,  but  this  is  not  one  of 


24  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

them.  I  am  afraid,  Dennis,  that  your  find  isn't  worth 
anything." 

The  Irishman  took  the  button  again,  and  turned  it 
over  in  his  hand  with  a  grieved,  reproving  expression. 
Lifting  it  to  his  nose,  he  discovered  that  his  friend 
was  right — it  was  wholly  brass. 

"I  was  thinking,"  he  said  dolefully,  "that  we  had 
struck  a  straam  where  all  the  goold  was  turned  out  by 
Nature  in  that  shape ;  but  I  f  aar  I  made  a  mistake,  as 
Mike  Rafferty  said  whin  the  bull  he  tried  to  stop 
flung  him  over  the  fence." 

He  explained,  in  answer  to  questioning,  that  he 
had  found  the  button,  not  in  the  brook,  but  on  the 
edge,  a  few  inches  away  from  the  water.  The  in- 
teresting question  which  occurred  to  all  was  as  to  how 
it  got  there.  There  might  be  a  score  of  guesses,  and 
all  be  wrong ;  nor  was  it  worth  while  to  spend  time  in 
conjectures.  Metcalf  recalled  the  smoke  of  the  camp 
fire,  and  wondered  whether  there  was  any  connection 
between  the  two.  This,  too,  must  remain  uncertain. 
Dennis  was  of  the  opinion  that  it  was  wise  to  have 
nothing  to  do  with  any  strangers  while  in  the  moun- 
tains, for,  as  he  viewed  it,  they  were  likely  to  prove 
unpleasant  companions.  In  this  solitary  region  the 
arm  of  the  law  was  powerless,  and  it  was  well  known 
that  the  gold  excitement  drew  many  of  the  worst  sort 
of  men  to  California. 

"But  that's  no  raison  why  we  shouldn't  hunt  a 
little  further  for  goold  in  these  parts,"  he  added; 
"there's  no  saying  what  luck  we  may  have,  as  me 
uncle  obsarved  when  he  tried  to  part  two  men  that 


A  FIND.  25 

were  fighting,  and  they  turned  upon  him.  Having 
found  the  button  of  an  army  officer,  the  nixt  thing  is 
likely  to  be  his  sword,  which  may  have  some  gilt  on 
the  same." 

Once  more  the  little  party  broke  apart.  Metcalf 
was  still  interested  in  the  signs  of  a  camp  not  far  off, 
and  he  gave  his  attention  to  that  instead  of  to  hunting 
for  gold.  He  did  not  halt  where  he  had  stopped 
before,  but  threaded  his  way  over  the  rocks  and 
boulders  in  the  direction  of  the  camp,  taking  care, 
however,  to  keep  as  much  out  of  sight  as  he  could. 
This  was  prudent,  so  long  as  he  did  not  know  whether 
he  was  approaching  friends  or  enemies. 

Advancing  with  so  much  caution,  it  required  the 
better  part  of  an  hour  to  reach  the  spot.  It  had  not 
escaped  his  keen  notice  that  the  column  of  smoke  had 
grown  thinner  while  he  was  going  forward,  a  fact 
which  would  seem  to  point  to  an  abandonment  of 
their  camp  by  the  strangers.  He  thought  they  might 
have  started  the  fire  for  the  purpose  of  cooking  food, 
since  the  weather  was  not  cold  enough  to  make  it 
necessary  for  comfort. 

Finally  he  came  upon  the  interesting  spot.  There 
was  a  heap  of  ashes  against  the  base  of  a  rock,  with  a 
number  of  half-burned  bits  of  wood,  but  no  sign  of 
any  person.  He  paused  for  some  minutes,  suspect- 
ing the  strangers  had  discovered  his  approach  and 
hidden  themselves,  but  he  soon  advanced  and  made  a 
closer  inspection  of  the  place.  He  saw  signs  showing 
where  someone  had  sat  on  the  ground,  and  a  faint, 
almost  imperceptible,  odour  lingering  in  the  air  told 


26  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

that  some  kind  of  flesh  had  been  broiled  over  the 
flames.  Further  search  revealed  the  faint  impression 
of  shoes — proof  that  the  strangers  were  not  Indians, 
but  white  men. 

"And  since  they  do  not  care  for  my  company,  I 
shall  not  force  it  upon  them,"  was  the  decision  of  Met- 
calf,  who  turned  about  to  rejoin  his  friends. 


CHAPTER  III 

STRANGERS 

THE  miner  had  gone  an  eighth  of  a  mile,  when  a 
natural  impulse  led  him  to  look  behind  him.  To  his 
surprise,  he  noted  that  the  column  of  smoke  had 
thickened  and  showed  dark  against  the  clear  sky  be- 
yond. The  embers  had  been  stirred  and  renewed  in 
the  short  time  that  had  passed  since  his  visit. 

Not  only  that,  but  directly  in  front  of  the  fire,  and 
standing  in  clear  view,  was  a  man,  dressed  like  himself 
in  the  garb  of  a  miner,  with  a  slouch  hat,  dilapidated 
garments,  and  with  a  gun  held  diagonally  across  his 
chest  and  grasped  in  both  hands,  as  if  th'e  owner  were 
asking  himself  whether  he  should  not  take  a  shot  at 
Metcalf  as  he  walked  away. 

Uncertain  what  his  pose  meant,  our  friend  made  a 
gesture  of  goodwill  by  waving  his  hand  toward  him. 
The  other,  instead  of  replying,  wheeled  about  and 
passed  out  of  sight. 

"That's  as  queer  conduct  as  I  ever  saw,"  mut- 
tered the  puzzled  miner.  "It  is  clear  that  he  doesn't 
wish  to  be  a  friend,  and,  as  I  decided  a  minute  ago,  I 
shan't  force  my  company  upon  him.  I  hope  his  ill- 
will  won't  take  form  in  action." 

He  felt  uneasy  lest  the  other  should  fire  at  him, 
27 


28  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

and  his  relief  was  great  when  he  was  sure  of  being 
beyond  range.  Although  he  looked  back  several 
times,  he  saw  nothing  more  of  the  man,  and  reached 
his  starting-point  without  further  adventure.  All  this 
time  a  curious  uneasiness  disturbed  him.  It  was  fair 
to  believe  the  stranger  had  companions,  and  Metcalf 
found  himself  continually  asking  himself  whether  it 
was  possible  that  their  visit  had  anything  to  do  with 
the  secret  he  had  received  from  Covington,  who  gave 
him  the  paper  with  the  drawing  and  writing.  It  was 
unreasonable  to  believe  in  the  possibility  of  such  a 
thing,  for  the  miner  had  assured  him  that  the  secret 
was  known  to  no  one  else;  but  it  was  the  knowledge 
of  the  cloud  which  had  darkened  the  poor  fellow's 
brain  that  was  the  real  cause  of  the  present  mis- 
giving. He  might  have  told  the  secret  to  others  and 
forgotten  it.  Moreover,  it  was  not  impossible  that 
these  strangers  had  learned  the  momentous  truth  in- 
dependently of*  him.  If  so,  their  dislike  to  new  com- 
panionship was  easily  understood. 

The  miner  scanned  everything  in  his  field  of  vision, 
and  it  cannot  be  said  he  was  disappointed  in  not  find- 
ing the  landmarks  that  had  baffled  him  like  a  jack-o'- 
lantern  for  many  days.  It  may  be  added  that  more  or 
less  mountain  peaks  were  always  in  sight,  but  none 
whose  appearance  suggested  the  three  elevations  he 
had  sought  so  long  in  vain. 

It  was  natural  that  the  friends,  absorbed  each  with 
the  work  in  hand,  should  become  further  separated 
from  one  another  than  they  suspected.  The  best  way 
to  hunt  was  singly,  and,  accordingly,  Tim  Crowell  and 


STRANGERS.  29 

Dennis  Murphy  took  different  routes,  as  they  had 
done  in  the  former  instance,  when  they  came  to  the 
forking  of  the  stream.  The  lad  and  the  dog  kept  to 
the  right,  and  the  man  to  the  left. 

"Whin  I  come  to  reflict  over  the  question,"  mut- 
tered Dennis,  with  his  eyes  roving  along  the  bed  of 
the  brook,  in  quest  of  something  of  a  yellow  colour, 
"I  don't  suppose  Nature  would  be  likely  to  stamp  a 
bit  of  goold  with  the  picture  of  an  eagle  and  then 
fasten  on  a  shank  for  the  convenience  of  sewing  on 
the  same,  though  if  the  button  had  been  made  of 
goold  I  should  have  been  in  doubt,  as  was  me  mither 
when  the  taycher  assured  her  there  was  one  word  in 
me  lisson  which  I  spelled  right.  I'd  give  a  good  deal 
to  know  how  that  button  got  there,  anyway;  but  as 
I  haven't  got  a  good  deal  of  anything,  and  no  one 
could  tell  me  if  I  had,  I'll  drop  the  subject,  as  I  re- 
marked whin  I  picked  up  a  rid  hot  horse-shoe." 

Twice  he  started  at  sight  of  something  showing  a 
saffron  tinge,  but  in  each  instance  he  was  disap- 
pointed. Finally,  he  paused  on  the  edge  of  a  pool, 
asking  himself  whether  he  should  not  wade  out  to  the 
centre  for  something  that  had  the  appearance  of  gold, 
though  he  hesitated  in  doubt. 

"It  hasn't  precisely  the  hue  I'm  longing  for,  but  it 
won't  do  any  harm  to  look  further." 

At  that  moment  he  was  startled  as  if  by  an  electric 
shock.  Above  the  murmur  of  the  little  stream  he 
heard  a  guttural  "Wooh!"  near  at  hand.  Dennis  had 
been  so  absorbed  in  peering  into  the  water  that  he 
gave  no  heed  whither  his  footsteps  led;  but  when  he 


30  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

looked  up  he  saw  an  Indian  standing  on  the  other 
side  of  the  brook  and  no  more  than  fifty  feet  distant. 
The  red  man  was  as  tall  as  himself  and  of  alarming 
appearance.  He  was  what  is  known  as  a  Mountain 
Indian,  as  much  superior  to  the  degraded  Diggers  as 
one  of  us  is  to  the  Hottentots  or  Bushmen  of  Africa. 

His  body  was  bare  above  the  waist;  he  was  erect 
and  straight  as  an  arrow;  and  there  were  the  usual 
breech  cloth,  leggings,  and  moccasins  below.  Like 
nearly  all  of  his  kind,  his  long  black  hair  was  abund- 
ant, and  hung  down  his  breast  and  over  his  back  to 
the  waist  line,  being  parted  in  the  middle,  but  showing 
no  ornamental  feathers,  as  was  the  case  with  most  of 
the  others  whom  the  Irishman  had  seen  in  California. 

Neither  was  there  a  sign  of  paint  on  the  body,  in 
the  hair,  or  on  the  face.  Had  the  Indian  wished  to 
make  himself  look  as  repellent  as  possible,  he  could 
not  have  added  to  his  ill  looks  by  any  splashes  of 
paint,  for  his  countenance  was  very  broad  at  the 
temples,  with  protruding  cheek  bones;  the  mouth 
was  tremendously  wide,  and  looked  much  wider  be- 
cause of  a  scar;  and  he  had  no  chin  worth  speaking 
of.  He  held  in  his  left  hand  a  long  bow,  and  the  top 
of  a  quiver  projected  above  his  shoulder,  but  his  right 
hand  hung  at  his  side  empty.  He  was  looking  in- 
tently at  the  Irishman,  as  if  in  doubt  as  to  his  species 
or  his  intentions. 

Now,  from  what  has  been  said  it  is  clear  that  had 
this  red  man  chosen  to  fit  one  of  his  arrows  to  the 
string,  he  could  have  launched  it  at  Dennis  Murphy, 
who  was  not  dreaming  of  danger,  and  would  have  con- 


STRANGERS.  31 

tinued  ignorant  of  it  but  for  that  exclamation,  which 
caused  him  to  look  up  and  discover  the  dusky  native 
before  him. 

Dennis  was  "rattled"  for  the  moment,  and  it  was 
instinct  that  caused  him  to  bring  his  rifle  round  in 
front  and  partly  raise  the  stock  to  his  shoulder.  The 
alert  Indian  read  his  purpose,  and  like  lightning 
flashed  an  arrow  from  his  quiver  and  he  began  fitting 
it  to  his  bow-string.  Dennis  saw  his  mistake,  and 
lowered  his  weapon.  The  Indian  proceeded  no 
further,  but  kept  the  single  missile  ready  for  instant 
use.  He  did  not  mean  to  be  taken  off  his  guard,  and 
doubtless  could  launch  his  deadly  arrow  sooner  than 
the  white  man  could  aim  and  fire  his  gun. 

"And  seeing  as  I'd  miss  and  he  wouldn't,"  thought 
Dennis,  "I'm  not  going  to  begin  this  rumpus,  though 
if  he'd  sittle  the  same  wid  a  shillelagh,  like  mesilf, 
nothing  would  plaise  me  more." 

But  the  action  of  the  native  was  so  clearly  friendly 
that  Dennis  could  not  refuse  to  accept  his  advances. 
Throwing  up  his  right  hand  to  his  forehead,  he  made  a 
military  salute,  inclined  his  head,  and  called  out: 

"I  hope  that  I  see  ye  well,  and  that  the  folks  at 
home  are  likewise  well,  and  that  ye'll  all  continue  to 
be  well,  as  ye'll  be  glad  to  larn  is  the  case  wid  mesilf." 

Since  the  other  could  have  no  idea  of  the  meaning 
of  these  words,  it  was  not  to  be  expected  that  he 
would  make  suitable  reply;  but  he  raised  his  hand 
palm  outward,  and  still  grasping  the  arrow,  held  it 
stationary  for  fully  half  a  minute.  Then  he  lowered 
his  hand  and  deliberately  shoved  back  the  missile 


32  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

among  the  others  in  the  quiver  behind  his  shoulder. 
This  left  him  in  a  certain  sense  unarmed,  though  it 
would  not  have  done  to  reckon  upon  his  remaining  so 
for  a  second  had  Dennis  made  any  threatening  dem- 
onstration. 

Nothing  would  have  pleased  our  friend  more  than 
to  open  a  conversation  with  this  native  Californian. 
How  much  interesting  information  he  could  give  about 
his  country!  Probably  he  could  direct  one  where  to 
find  the  rich  deposits  that  must  exist  in  many  places 
among  these  mountains.  Dennis  noticed  that  the  left 
wrist  of  the  Indian  was  encircled  by  a  band,  which, 
beyond  doubt,  was  gold,  and  must  be  worth  a  con- 
siderable amount.  But  there  was  no  possibility  of 
conversation  where  neither  understood  a  word  of  what 
the  other  said. 

Satisfied  as  to  the  friendly  feelings  of  the  other, 
Dennis  now  walked  slowly  towards  him,  without 
showing  any  hesitancy  in  his  gait.  The  red  man 
watched  him  closely,  but  remained  as  motionless  as  a 
statue,  alert  and  on  his  guard,  until  little  more  than  a 
rod  separated  them.  Then  the  savage  threw  up  his 
right  hand  and  motioned  for  the  other  to  come  no 
nearer,  the  meaning  of  the  gesture  being  quite  plain 
and  unmistakable. 

"Anything  to  be  agraable,  as  me  second  cousin 
said  when  he  fell  over  a  wheelbarrow  and  the  leddies 
he  was  bowing  to  broke  into  laughter ;  I  can't  say  I'm 
hankering  for  yer  company,  and  I  don't  think  ye  faal 
any  naad  of  mine." 

It  occurred  to  Dennis  that  the  next  most  appro- 


STRANGERS.  33 

priate  thing  for  him  to  do  would  be  to  present  some- 
thing to  the  other. 

"I'd  be  glad  to  do  the  same,  for  ye  might  take  it 
into  yer  head  to  presint  me  in  return  that  golden 
necklace  around  yer  wrist,  which  the  same  would  be 
mighty  nice  to  sind  to  me  swaatheart  across  the  ocean, 
but  I  haven't  anything  I  call  to  mind  that  I  can  well 
spare." 

He  looked  down  the  front  of  his  body  and  passed 
his  hand  over  his  cap. 

"If  I  should  give  ye  my  shoes,  I'd  have  to  go 
barefoot,  and,  though  I  did  the  same  in  owld  Ireland, 
this  country  isn't  favourable  for  tramping  about  in  yer 
unclothed  feet;  if  I  give  ye  my  gun,  it  would  be 
foolish ;  and  if  I  parted  wid  me  pipe  and  'bacca,  it 
would  break  me  heart.  And  I'm  not  sartin  that  if  I 
did  any  of  these  things  ye  would  bestow  that  ornamint 
upon  me,  so  we  won't  do  anything  of  the  kind.  Are 
ye  off?" 

The  question  was  caused  by  the  action  of  the  red 
man,  who  at  this  juncture  turned  and  walked  away. 
He  leaped  across  the  narrow  stream,  so  as  to  stand  on 
the  same  side  with  Dennis,  and  then  took  a  course 
nearly  at  right  angles,  his  action  seeming  to  signify 
that  the  interview,  so  far  as  he  was  concerned,  was 
over. 

"I  don't  blame  ye,  as  it  is  all  a  waste  of  time  for 
ye  to  stay  here;  but  ye  are  showing  a  big  lot  of  con- 
fidence in  mesilf,  which  I  may  say  is  the  rule  wid  most 
all  who  maat  me." 

Nothing  in  the  world  would  have  been  easier  than 


34  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

for  Dennis  to  bring  his  gun  to  a  level  and  pick  off  the 
red  man,  whose  face  was  turned  away;  and  it  need 
hardly  be  said  that  nothing  in  the  world  would  have 
led  him  to  do  such  an  unpardonable  thing,  for  there 
could  have  been  no  possible  excuse  for  the  wanton 
cruelty. 

A  singular  occurrence  followed  when  the  Indian 
had  taken  no  more  than  a  score  of  steps.  From  be- 
hind a  boulder  which  he  approached  arose  a  second 
Indian,  who  looked  enough  like  him  to  be -his  twin 
brother,  and  who  was  also  armed  with  bow  and  arrows. 
He  took  his  place  a  few  paces  in  front  of  the  first,  and, 
without  speaking  a  word,  the  two  walked  away  in 
Indian  file — that  is,  one  behind  the  other. 

Dennis  watched  them  until  they  passed  out  of 
sight,  and  then  turned  back  to  his  hunt  in  the  brook. 
There  was  something  so  peculiar  and  out  of  the  com- 
mon in  his  experience  that  he  smiled  to  himself. 

"I  don't  understand  it  at  all,  as  me  other  frinds 
used  to  say  whin  they  obsarved  how  none  of  the  lads 
was  admired  half  as  much  as  mesilf ,  but  I  s'pose  it's  a 
way  they  have  in  these  parts." 

He  resumed  his  search,  though  he  could  not  dis- 
miss the  little  incident  from  his  mind.  Perhaps  a  half- 
hour  passed,  when  he  abruptly  stopped  and  exclaimed, 
in  considerable  excitement: 

"It  didn't  occur  to  me  till  this  minute  that  whin 
thim  two  gintlemen  walked  away  they  took  a  coorse 
that  must  bring  'em  to  where  Tim  and  Tige  are  look- 
ing for  goold.  They  must  have  found  the  boy  by  this 
time,  and  I  fear  something  has  gone  amiss,  though 


STRANGERS.  35 

they  didn't  offer  to  make  any  trouble  wid  mesilf.     I 
ought  to  have  followed  thim  without  delay." 

The  honest  fellow  was  filled  with  misgiving,  and 
reproached  himself  that  he  had  not  awakened  long 
before  to  the  possible  danger  that  threatened  his 
young  friend. 


CHAPTER  IV 

MISSING 

IT  did  not  add  to  Dennis  Murphy's  peace  of  mind  to 
recall  the  occurrence  of  more  than  a  week  before, 
which  was  the  means  of  bringing  him  and  Tim  into 
association  with  Jarvis  Metcalf.  For  it  had  been  the 
alertness  of  the  boy  that  prevented  the  Indian  from 
launching  his  deadly  arrow  at  the  miner,  as  he  sat  with 
his  back  against  a  rock  and  sunk  in  slumber.  The 
Irishman  did  not  forget  that  the  Indian  who  was 
frightened  off  at  that  time  was  one  of  those  ranging 
through  the  mountains,  and  was  armed  with  bow  and 
arrow.  What  more  probable  than  that  one  of  the  two 
whom  he  had  seen  walk  towards  the  lad  was  he  who 
had  been  robbed  of  his  intended  victim  by  Tim  ? 

If  this  savage  refrained  from  trying  to  harm  Den- 
nis, was  it  probable  that  he  would  be  equally  con- 
siderate towards  the  boy  against  whom  he  had  a 
grievance?  If  able  to  catch  him  unawares — and 
nothing  was  easier — would  he  not  be  eager  to  punish 
him?  No  people  in  the  world  are  more  revengeful 
than  the  American  Indians,  and  it  would  seem  that 
this  was  the  most  natural  course  for  one  or  both  the 
red  men  to  follow. 

You  will  understand,  therefore,  the  distress  of  Den- 
36 


MISSING.  37 

nis  while  hurrying  over  the  rough  surface  to  the  other 
branch  of  the  stream  along  which  his  young  friend 
and  Tige  were  hunting  for  golden  nuggets.  He  was 
surprised  to  find  how  far  apart  these  two  forks  were 
at  so  comparatively  short  a  distance  from  their  junc- 
tion, but  when  one  is  absorbed  in  his  work  he  pays 
little  heed  to  time  or  distance.  At  last  Dennis  came 
to  the  dashing,  sparkling  brook  that  was  the  counter- 
part of  the  one  he  had  left  behind  him.  He  had  not 
caught  a  glimpse  of  the  Indians  on  his  way  thither, 
though  he  could  not  take  much  hope  from  that  fact. 

"Now,  how  am  I  to  know  whether  the  young  ras- 
cal is  up  or  down  stream?  We  must  have  been  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  apart,  and  he  may  be  as  far  up 
stream;  but,  for  the  raison  that  I  stopped  to  have  a 
talk  wid  that  gentleman,  I  think  it's  likely  Tim  is 
above  me." 

Suddenly  he  thought  of  Tige.  He  would  be  the 
most  likely  to  respond  to  his  call,  and  he  whistled  to 
him,  as  he  had  often  done  in  their  Eastern  home. 
At  the  same  time  he  hallooed  to  Tim  himself ;  but, 
without  waiting  for  a  reply,  he  pushed  on  up  the 
stream  till  he  arrived  at  a  point  where  it  issued  from 
beneath  a  mass  of  rocks,  whose  extent  he  could  only 
guess. 

This  convinced  Dennis  that  it  was  useless  to 
search  further  for  the  boy  in  that  direction.  The  fact 
that  he  had  seen  nothing  of  him  or  his  dog  showed 
that  they  must  have  turned  down  stream,  and  were 
therefore  further  from  him  than  they  had  been  at  any 
time  during  the  day.  Had  he  descended  the  brook 


38  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

upon  reaching  it,  he  must  have  come  up  with  them 
long  before.  As  it  was,  they  were  evidently  so  far 
off  that  it  was  useless  to  call  either  to  the  boy  or  to 
the  dog. 

The  discovery  was  in  the  nature  of  a  relief  to  Den- 
nis. It  seemed  likely  to  him  that  the  lad  had  met 
Metcalf,  who  would  probably  be  seeking  to  rejoin  the 
others,  since  the  time  for  the  mid-day  meal  was  near. 
He  therefore  whistled  softly  to  himself,  with  a  return 
of  his  old  spirits,  while  following  the  course  down- 
ward. He  had  some  expectation  of  meeting  Tim  at 
the  point  where  the  brooks  forked,  and  he  ventured 
to  call  to  him  and  to  whistle  to  the  dog.  There  was 
no  response,  and  he  whistled  louder  than  before.  This 
brought  a  reply,  but  from  a  point  down-stream  from 
which  he  had  not  been  expecting  it.  Looking  in  that 
direction,  he  was  somewhat  surprised  to  see  the  form 
of  Jarvis  Metcalf  come  to  view  from  between  the 
rocks  and  stunted  pine. 

"I  didn't  know  whether  you  were  signalling  for 
me,"  explained  the  miner,  "but  I  was  so  near  that  I 
thought  I  might  as  well  answer.  Where's  Tim?" 

"It  was  him  that  I  was  calling  to,"  replied  Dennis, 
"and  I  feel  onaisy  on  his  account." 

"What  reason  have  you  for  misgiving?"  asked 
the  miner,  who,  it  was  plain,  did  not  share  in  the 
anxiety. 

Dennis  told  all  that  is  known  to  the  reader,  and 
asked  his  friend  what  he  thought  of  the  situation  in 
the  light  of  such  knowledge. 

"I  cannot  share  your  alarm — at  least,  I  shall  not 


MISSING.  39 

until  a  longer  time  passes  without  our  seeing  anything 
of  the  boy." 

"I  hope  ye  are  right,  but  it's  the  mixing  in  of  the 
Injins  that  disturbs  me.  Sure  one  of  thim  was  the 
one  who  would  have  shot  ye  but  for  the  boy." 

"I  am  sure  that  neither  of  them  is." 

"How  can  ye  know  that?"  asked  the  wondering 
Dennis. 

"You  have  described  both  of  those  whom  you  saw 
as  tall  men — fully  as  tall  as  you  are  yourself." 

"There  can  be  no  doubt  of  the  same." 

"Remember  that  I  had  a  good  look  at  the  one 
whom  Tim  scared  away,  and  he  was  hardly  more  than 
five  feet  high." 

"That  relaves  me  mind  greatly,  as  the  prisoner 
said  whin  he  was  towld  he  was  guilty  of  burglary, 
thinking  all  the  time  it  was  petty  larceny;  but  seeing 
as  I  haven't  seen  an  hour  since  we've  been  in  Calif orny 
that  the  boy  wasn't  hungry,  I  wonder  that  he  is  not 
here  to  make  sure  he'll  not  be  late." 

"He  won't  keep  us  waiting  long ;  but  I  haven't 
seen  any  game,  and  shall  have  to  depend  upon  the 
hook  and  line.  Have  you  caught  sight  of  anything 
to  shoot?" 

"Only  them  two  Injins." 

"I  will  make  a  hunt  for  fish.  I  suppose  you  would 
prefer  to  stay  here  and  wait  for  Tim?" 

"If  ye  can  get  along  without  me,  I'd  prefer  to  do 
the  same,  seeing  I  can't  help  feeling  a  little  onaisy, 
after  all." 

Metcalf  was  absent  for  a  full  hour;  but  when  he 


40  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

came  back  he  brought  enough  fish,  dressed  for  broil- 
ing, to  furnish  a  meal  for  all.  They  would  have  been 
glad  for  some  sort  of  food  made  from  flour ;  but  since 
that  was  out  of  the  question  they  were  thankful  to 
feast  upon  flesh. 

It  had  been  a  trying  hour  to  Dennis,  for  during 
that  time  nothing  was  seen  or  learned  of  Tim  or  Tige. 
It  was  useless  for  the  miner  to  pretend  there  was  no 
cause  for  alarm.  Surely  the  boy  would  not  have 
stayed  away  so  long  had  there  not  been  unusual  cause 
for  it. 

"Have  you  called  or  signalled  to  him?"  asked 
Metcalf. 

"Only  once  or  twice.  I  had  a  queer  feeling  that 
if  I  done  so,  them  as  I  didn't  wish  would  hear  me ;  but 
since  ye  have  come  back  I  feel  different." 

Inserting  his  thumb  and  forefinger  in  his  mouth, 
Dennis  emitted  a  whistle  like  that  of  a  locomotive, 
which  must  have  penetrated  several  miles  in  every 
direction.  The  two  stood  silent  and  listening,  both 
looking  significantly  in  each  other's  face.  The  miner 
was  about  to  speak,  when  each  heard  the  bark  of  Tige 
coming  from  the  direction  of  the  stream  along  which 
Dennis  had  pressed  most  of  his  search.  The  answer 
was  naturally  a  vast  relief  to  both  of  them,  but  they 
thought  it  strange  that  nothing  was  heard  from  Tim 
himself. 

More  inexplicable  than  all  was  the  absence  of  the 
dog,  after  replying  to  their  call.  When  more  than 
enough  time  had  passed  for  him  to  appear,  Dennis 
asked  his  friend  what  it  could  mean. 


MISSING.  41 

"I  don't  understand  it;  suppose  you  call  to  him 
again." 

Dennis  did  so,  twice  in  succession ;  but  there  was 
no  reply.  Catching  up  his  gun,  Metcalf  hurried  to- 
wards the  point  whence  the  answer  had  come  in  the 
first  instance,  Dennis  almost  treading  on  his  heels. 

They  did  not  cease  their  scrambling  run  until  well 
beyond  the  point  where  the  bark  of  the  faithful 
animal  had  been  heard,  but  nothing  of  him  or  the  boy 
was  seen. 

"It  is  useless  to  go  any  further,"  said  the  miner, 
abruptly  halting.  "You  know  more  about  that  dog 
than  I  do,  and  perhaps  can  explain  his  behaviour." 

"No  more  than  yersilf.  I've  known  him  since  he 
was  a  pup,  and  he  always  showed  good  sinse." 

"He  may  have  done  so  now,  though  we  don't 
understand  him.  Let's  go  back  to  where  we  left  the 
fish  waiting  to  be  cooked." 

"It's  mighty  little  appetite  I  have  lift,"  said  Den- 
nis sorrowfully,  as  he  slowly  walked  beside  his  com- 
panion. 

"Nor  have  I ;  but  I  want  time  to  think  over  this 
situation,  which  just  now  is  beyond  my  comprehen- 
sion. Please  don't  speak  to  me  till  I  say  something." 

They  formed  a  mournful  pair,  as  they  made  their 
way  over  the  rough,  broken  ground  till  they  came  to 
the  spot  where  the  dressed  fish  had  been  laid  on  a 
broad,  flat  rock.  Even  then  the  miner  did  not  open 
his  mouth,  but  busied  himself  in  gathering  bits  of 
wood,  sticks,  leaves,  and  pine  cones,  with  which  he 
prepared  a  fire. 


42  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

"We  must  force  ourselves  to  eat,"  he  explained, 
when  the  hastily  prepared  food  was  ready.  "We 
shall  need  our  strength,  and  there's  no  saying  when 
we  shall  eat  again." 

"Have  ye  yet  any  opinion  to  give?" 

"Wait  till  we  are  through  eating;  then  I  shall  be 
ready  to  talk." 

It  was  little  they  ate.  The  minds  of  both  were 
preoccupied,  and  but  for  the  urgency  of  his  friend, 
Dennis  would  not  have  partaken  of  a  mouthful.  The 
minute  soon  came  when  Metcalf  was  ready  to  say 
what  was  in  his  thoughts. 

"The  most  likely  explanation  that  occurs  to  me  is 
that  those  two  Indians  whom  you  saw  have  caused 
the  disappearance  of  Tim." 

"Do  ye  mean  they  have  taken  him  off  a  prisoner, 
or " 

The  distressed  fellow  could  not  utter  the  words 
on  his  tongue. 

"I  think  he  has  been  carried  away  by  them ;  but, 
if  Ihat  be  so,  it  doesn't  explain  the  action  of  the  dog.'' 

"I'm  thinking  Tige  meant  his  bark  as  a  call  for  us 
to  follow  him,  and,  belaving  we  would  do  so,  he  ran 
back  to  kape  his  master  company." 

"Possibly  you  are  right;  but  if  so,  why  didn't  the 
dog  wait  till  he  was  sure  we  did  follow  him?" 

"So  he  would  have  done  at  any  other  time ;  but 
he  may  have  been  so  distressed  that,  like  us,  he  lost 
a  part  of  his  wits  and  'spoSed  we'd  follow  without  his 
waiting  longer,  seeing  he  was  in  such  great  haste." 

"There  is  probability  in  what  you  say;  but  even 


MISSING.  43 

then  it  would  seem  that  when  he  found  we  had  turned 
back  he  ought  to  have  come  after  us  again." 

"Maybe  he  will  do  the  same." 

Both  instinctively  looked  in  the  direction  from 
which  had  sounded  the  bark,  and  silently  waited  for 
several  minutes,  but  the  dog  did  not  appear. 

"Call  to  him,"  suggested  the  miner. 

Dennis  repeated  his  ringing  whistle  several  times; 
but  the  listening  ears  caught  no  reply,  nor  did  Tige 
show  himself. 

"The  only  explanation  that  occurs  to  me  is  that 
his  pursuit  of  his  young  master  has  carried  him  be- 
yond hearing.  He  prefers  to  stay  with  him  rather 
than  to  make  sure  we  are  following.  Dennis,  you  and 
I  must  now  part  company." 

The  Irishman  looked  wonderingly  at  his  com- 
panion. 

"I  learned  this  forenoon  that  there  is  a  party  of 
white  men  in  the  mountains;  in  our  calculations  we 
must  take  them  into  account." 

"What  raison  have  ye  to  think  ill  of  them?" 

"I  saw  one  of  them  a  while  ago,  and  he  acted  as 
if  he  were  an  enemy  instead  of  a  friend.  I  suspect 
now  that  those  men — I  don't  know-  how  many  there 
are — know  something  of  that  which  we  have  thought 
was  a  secret  with  us.  They  are  in  the  Santa  Lucia 
Mountains  on  the  same  errand  that  brought  me  here. 
They  resent  our  presence,  and,  perhaps,  afraid  to 
make  any  move  against  us,  have  taken  the  boy." 

"What  for?" 

"In  order  to  make  terms  with  us.    It  doesn't  seem 


44  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

likely  they  would  do  him  harm,  at  any  rate  not  until 
they  gave  us  a  chance  to  prevent  it." 

"How?"  asked  Dennis,  who  failed  to  follow  this 
fine-spun  reasoning. 

"Suppose  they  notified  us  that  the  boy  would  be 
returned  in  case  we  withdrew  with  him  from  this 
region  ?" 

"I  would  not  hesitate  a  minute  to  lave  if  that  was 
the  only  way  to  save  him." 

"Nor  would  I,"  was  the  hearty  response  of  the 
miner. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  SIGNAL   FIRE 

VIEWING  the  painful  situation  from  the  standpoint  of 
Metcalf,  the  miner,  it  must  be  admitted  that  his 
theory  was  ingenious,  and  had  a  certain  force.  It 
seemed  to  him  that  young  Tim  Crowell  was  a  prisoner 
either  of  the  Indians  or  of  the  party  of  white  men 
who  were  known  to  be  in  the  neighbourhood.  It  was 
best  that  the  investigation  of  the  former  possibility 
should  be  by  Dennis  Murphy.  In  the  first  place,  it 
had  been  shown  that  the  two  red  men  last  seen  were 
not  members  of  the  little  settlement  which  had  been 
offended  by  the  action  of  the  Irishman  more  than  a 
week  before;  nor  was  either  of  them  the  one  who, 
through  the  watchfulness  of  the  lad,  had  been  pre- 
vented from  launching  his  arrow  at  the  sleeping  miner. 
Therefore  there  were  no  scores  laid  up  by  the  couple 
against  the  white  men. 

Moreover,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  the  meeting 
between  Dennis  and  the  single  Indian,  including,  as  a 
consequence,  the  second  spectator,  had  been  of  a 
friendly  nature.  The  savage  had  not  used  his  bow 
and  arrow  against  the  unconscious  Celt  when  he  had 
the  best  chance  in  the  world  to  do  so.  Dennis  himself 
had  acted,  after  the  first  breath  of  suspicion  was 

45 


46  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

swept  aside,  as  if  he  held  only  the  best  wishes  towards 
the  other.  It  would  seem,  therefore,  that  he  need  not 
hesitate  to  meet  them  again.  Whether  he  should 
succeed  in  doing  so  depended  upon  his  own  wit  and 
skill,  and  also  perhaps  upon  luck. 

Leaving  his  companion,  then,  to  attend  to  that 
part  of  the  business,  Metcalf  gave  his  energy  to  the 
task  imposed  upon  himself.  It  was  a  singular  theory 
that  he  had  framed,  but  it  had  reason.  Several  men 
had  come  to  the  vicinity  in  quest  of  the  hidden  de- 
posit of  gold  which  had  brought  Metcalf  from  the 
regular  diggings.  They  were  still  hunting  for  the 
treasure;  but  the  presence  of  others,  in  the  persons 
of  two  men  and  a  boy  with  his  dog,  must  lead  them  to 
suspect  their  errand.  Naturally,  the  strangers  would 
fear  that  Metcalf  and  his  friends  were  likely  to  be 
the  first  to  unearth  the  secret,  in  which  event  the 
former  would  lose  the  whole  fortune.  Most  men  will 
do  desperate  things  for  the  sake  of  gold,  and  the  cap- 
ture of  the  boy  and  the  holding  of  him  as  a  hostage 
would  appear  to  be  the  surest  means  of  driving  the 
rivals  from  the  field.  When  the  life  of  the  lad  was 
weighed  in  the  balance,  there  could  be  no  doubt  of  the 
decision  of  Metcalf  and  Murphy. 

Such,  briefly,  was  the  theory  upon  which  the  miner 
was  acting.  Nearly  half  the  day  remained  at  com- 
mand, and  much  could  be  done  in  that  time.  After 
parting  from  his  friend,  he  set  out  to  return  to  the 
point  in  the  hills  where  he  had  seen  the  remains  of  the 
camp  fire  kindled  by  the  strangers,  and  which  had 
been  freshened  after  he  left  it  by  the  man  who  acted 


THE  SIGNAL  FIRE.  47 

so  sourly  towards  himself.  The  miner's  resolve  was 
to  hunt  up  this  same  man  or  his  compaaions,  and 
force  him  to  tell  the  truth.  There  ought  to  be  no 
trouble  in  doing  so,  provided  Metcalf  was  right  in  his 
view;  for,  having  obtained  the  boy,  his  captors  ought 
to  be  ready  to  present  the  terms  of  their  bargain. 

The  miner  meant  to  approach  the  other  camp  with 
such  care  that  he  would  not  be  discovered  by  anyone 
on  guard.  To  do  this  he  made  a  long  circuit  deeper 
into  the  mountains,  passing  beyond  the  point  and  ap- 
proaching it  from  almost  the  opposite  quarter.  A 
scout  making  his  way  into  the  lines  of  an  enemy  could 
not  have  been  more  cautious.  He  noticed  as  he  drew 
nigh  the  spot  that  the  tell-tale  column  of  vapour, 
pointing  straight  upward  into  the  sky,  had  become  so 
thin  and  faint  that  it  required  a  keen  vision  to  see  it. 
This  looked  as  if  the  party  once  there  had  gone  away. 
If  they  were  engaged  in  hunting  for  hidden  treasure, 
nothing  was  more  natural  than  this  course. 

After  spending  some  time  in  reconnoitring  the 
spot  without  seeing  anyone,  the  miner  straightened  up 
and  strode  boldly  forward.  Very  little  or  no  change 
Was  to  be  observed.  There  lay  the  heap  of  ashes, 
with  several  smouldering  embers  among  them,  but  no 
signs  of  any  person  near.  Whatever  they  brought 
with  them  to  the  spot  had  been  taken  away,  and  there 
was  no  saying  when  they  would  return. 

"You  seem  to  be  very  curious  about  other  folks' 
business." 

The  voice  came  from  a  point  behind  the  miner, 
and  turning  his  head  he  saw  his  former  acquaintance 


48  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

before  him.  It  was  the  same  man,  with  his  slouch  hat, 
shabby  clothing,  slim  frame,  bearded  face,  and  long, 
formidable  rifle.  After  all,  he  must  have  seen  Met- 
calf  stealing  to  the  spot,  and  had  outwitted  him.  The 
miner  did  not  like  his  looks,  and  he  remembered  with 
displeasure  their  former  meeting ;  but  he  felt  the  need 
of  hiding  his  feelings,  and,  therefore,  pretending  a 
good-will  which  he  was  far  from  feeling,  he  replied 
with  a  smile: 

"Men  of  the  same  blood  in  a  lonely  country  ought 
to  be  interested  in  one  another.  I  saw  the  srnoke  of 
your  camp  fire,  and  came  forward  to  make  your  ac- 
quaintance." ' 

"Wouldn't  it  have  been  well  to  wait  till  you  were 
invited?"  asked  the  other,  who  had  halted  several 
paces  away  and  scowled  at  the  intruder. 

"I  am  afraid  I  should  have  had  to  wait  a  long 
time." 

"And  it  would  have  been  better  to  wait  a  long 
time,"  was  the  surly  response. 

The  miner  was  nettled  by  the  curt  manner  as  much 
as  by  the  words  of  the  other.  He  did  not  feel  like 
humbling  himself  to  him,  and  spoke  tartly: 

"Judging  from  your  looks  and  ill-manners,  I  can 
understand  that  no  gentleman  would  be  anxious  to 
make  your  acquaintance,  but  it  occurred  to  me  that 
we  might  have  some  business  together." 

"Why,  then,  didn't  you  come  openly  forward,  in- 
stead of  sneaking  up  to  our  camp?" 

"I  did  so  in  the  first  instance,  and  you  sneaked  off 
to  avoid  meeting  me." 


THE  SIGNAL  FIRE.  49 

"That  ought  to  have  been  sufficient  to  keep  you 
away." 

"So  it  would  had  I  not  suspected  that  we  might 
have  something  of  mutual  interest  to  discuss,"  said 
Metcalf. 

"What  business  can  I  have  with  you?" 

All  this  time  the  stranger  held  his  place  a  few 
paces'  away,  with  his  gun  resting  in  the  hollow  of  his 
left  arm  and  his  repellent  scowl  on  his  face.  The 
query  which  he  had  just  made  did  much  to  convince 
Metcalf  that,  whatever  misfortune  had  overtaken 
Tim  Crowell,  this  man  and  his  companions  as  yet 
had  had  nothing  to  do  with  it.  Still,  it  was  possible 
that  they  held  some  such  plans  in  mind. 

"That  remains  for  you  to  say." 

"I  haven't  any.     Who  are  you?" 

"I  came  down  from  the  diggings  up  north  on  the 
same  errand  that  brought  you  into  this  part  of  the 
world." 

"What  was  that?" 

"To  hunt   for  gold." 

"You  don't  look  as  if  you  had  found  it." 

"Judging  from  appearances,  you  and  I  have  been 
equally  lucky." 

"How  long  have  you  been  here?" 

"Over  a  month.  How  long  have  you  been  pros- 
pecting?" 

"I  don't  know  that  it  is  any  concern  of  yours." 

"As  much  as  my  doings  are  a  concern  of  yours. 
I  answered  you  courteously  but  you  don't  seem  to 
know  how  to  do  a  thing  of  that  nature." 


50  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

"I  don't  mind  telling — since  you  are  so  curious — 
that  we  have  been  here  for  only  a  few  days." 

"Then  you  are  not  alone?" 

Now  that  the  other  had  given  some  information, 
he  did  not  seem  to  object  to  give  more. 

"There  are  only  two  of  us;  we  have  been  making 
a  hunt  through  here  for  some  days,  but  didn't  have 
any  more  success  than  you.  Still,  we  mean  to  keep 
at  it  a  little  longer." 

"I  don't  believe  it  will  pay  you." 

"You  don't  know  anything  about  it.  It  may  pay 
us,  and  it  may  not;  but  we  are  not  going  to  give  up 
yet  awhile.  How  many  are  in  your  company?" 

"I  have  only  one  companion,  like  you." 

Unfortunately,  a  curious  impulse  led  Metcalf  to 
avoid  referring  to  Tim  Crowell.  He  was  not  with 
him  or  Murphy  just  then,  though  he  was  a  member 
of  the  little  party.  The  miner  had  a  feeling  that  if  he 
mentioned  the  boy's  name  he  would  have  to  tell  more 
about  him,  and  he  did  not  wish  to  do  that. 

"Have  you  seen  any  other  persons  since  coming 
here?" 

"Only  a  few  Indians,  but  we  had  no  trouble  with 
them." 

"You  must  look  out  for  them;  they're  a  bad  lot." 

"I  haven't  found  them  so;  they  are  not  likely  to 
molest  you  if  you  treat  them  right.  But  may  I  ask 
where  your  friend  is?" 

"Of  course  you  can  ask  anything  you  choose.  I 
don't  know  where  he  is." 

Metcalf  had  learned  enough  to  care  to  converse 


THE  SIGNAL  FIRE.  51 

no  further  with  this  churlish  fellow.'  The  two  had  not 
exchanged  names,  and  nothing  was  to  be  gained  by 
talking. 

"Well,"  said  the  miner,  with  a  smile  and  light 
laugh,  "I'm  sure  that  my  company  isn't  any  more 
pleasant  to  you  than  yours  is  to  me;  so,  good  morn- 
ing." 

The  other  gave  a  slight  nod  and  grunt,  but  did  not 
speak,  as  the  visitor  turned  about  and  strode  from  the 
spot.  Metcalf  felt  a  twinge  of  uneasiness  for  the  first 
minute  or  two,  lest  the  other  should  fire  at  him,  but  it 
is  not  likely  he  thought  of  such  a  thing,  for  nothing  of 
the  kind  took  place. 

"There's  one  thing  certain,"  said  Metcalf  to  him- 
self; "that  fellow  doesn't  know  anything  about  Tim. 
If  my  theory  had  been  right  he  would  have  been 
anxious  to  talk.  It  is  strange  that  his  companion 
keeps  out  of  sight.  He  may  be  the  one  who  is  try- 
ing to  abduct  Tim,  and  hold  him  as  a  hostage;  but  if 
that  were  so,  his  partner  would  not  have  been  so 
gruff  with  me.  The  whole  thing  seems  to  me  to  be 
guesswork,  and  I  am  as  likely  to  be  wrong  as  right ; 
but  we  must  keep  up  the  search  till  Dennis  or  I  learns 
the  truth." 

When  half-way  to  the  spot  where  he  had  parted 
from  his  friend,  the  miner  paused  and  scanned  the 
country  behind  him.  To  his  astonishment  he  saw 
that  the  almost  invisible  line  of  smoke  climbing  up- 
ward from  the  camp  fire  of  the  stranger  had  thick- 
ened again  and  showed  as  distinctly  as  if  painted 
against  the  clear  sky. 


S2  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

"That  is  a  signal!"  exclaimed  Metcalf.  "There 
is  more  going  on  than  I  know.  That  fellow  did  not 
tell  me  the  truth.  A  large  party  is  in  the  mountains, 
and  they  are  up  to  mischief." 

If  so,  it  would  seem  that  the  signal  would  be  an- 
swered from  some  other  quarter.  Metcalf  scrutinised 
every  part  of  the  country  within  his  range  of  vision, 
but  could  discover  nothing  in  the  nature  of  a  reply. 
He  was  standing  in  a  sort  of  depression,  which  shut 
off  sight  of  the  ocean,  and  on  his  right  the  moun- 
tains rose  several  hundred  feet  above  him.  They  dis- 
played the  growth  of  pine  seen  everywhere  in  that 
section,  with  enormous  piles  of  rocks,  broken  by  small 
streams  dashing  here  and  there  among  and  over  them ; 
but  nowhere  could  he  detect  any  smoke  or  sign  of 
a  camp  fire,  except  upon  the  slight  elevation  visited 
a  short  time  before. 

Perplexed  and  distressed,  he  resumed  his  course, 
not  halting  again  until  he  reached  the  spot  where  he 
and  Dennis  Murphy  had  separated  a  couple  of  hours 
previous.  The  Irishman  was  still  absent,  and  he 
hardly  expected  to  see  or  hear  from  him  before  night- 
fall. He  sat  down  on  one  of  the  numerous  boulders 
that  were  all  around  him,  and  gave  himself  up  to 
thought. 

Of  the  many  puzzling  features  of  the  situation,  one 
of  the  hardest  to  understand  was  the  conduct  of  the 
dog  Tige.  No  theory  the  miner  could  think  of  ex- 
plained why,  after  coming  so  near  to  where  he  and 
Dennis  were  awaiting  him  and  his  young  master,  he 
should  make  off  again  and  then  fail  to  return.  If 


THE  SIGNAL  FIRE.  S3 

Tim  was  held  by  the  white  men,  the  canine  ought 
to  have  hastened  to  his  friends  and  guided  them  to 
the  help  of  the  boy.  It  was  not  supposable  that  the 
white  captors  would  harm  the  dog;  for  he  was  not 
only  handsome,  unusually  intelligent,  and  valuable, 
but  there  could  be  no  call  for  putting  him  out  of  the 
way.  His  life  really  ought  to  be  more  secure  than 
that  of  his  master,  and  he  would  have  served  as  the 
best  possible  messenger  between  his  friends  and 
enemies.  His  sagacity  would  prevent  his  own  cap- 
ture, or  had  he  been  restrained  of  his  liberty  it  would 
have  been  only  for  a  brief  while  before  he  made  his 
escape. 

This  view  of  the  case  did  much  to  convince  the 
miner  that  the  white  man  with  whom  he  had  held  the 
interview  knew  nothing  of  Tim;  but  when  this  view 
was  settled  the  discovery  of  the  signal  fire  knocked  all 
speculation  awry. 

It  was  harder  to  theorise  on  the  basis  of  Tim's 
capture  by  the  Indians.  No  people  in  the  world  are 
fonder  of  dogs  than  the  American  aborigines,  and  it 
would  seem  that  they  ought  to  have  held  this  canine 
in  high  regard.  It  could  be  believed  even  that  they 
would  value  him  more  than  his  owner,  for  he  might 
have  been  made  useful,  while  Tim  could  serve  only  as 
a  hostage  or  to  gratify  the  ill-will  of  the  red  men. 
The  latter  motive  might  lead  the  savages  to  slay  the 
dog  before  making  the  boy  a  prisoner ;  but  that  could 
hardly  have  been  the  case,  since  Tige  was  heard  from 
after  the  disappearance  of  Tim. 

"It  is  more  than  I  can  understand,"  was  the  con- 


54  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

elusion  of  the  miner,  when  he  had  given  his  thoughts 
for  another  hour  to  the  matter.  "There  is  clearly 
some  mystery  in  the  business  which  is  much  beyond 
my  grasp." 


CHAPTER  VI 

A  CLUE 

MEANWHILE,  Dennis  Murphy  had  put  forth  all  the 
energy  and  ability  of  which  he  was  master  in  his  at- 
tempt to  find  out  the  truth  about  Tim  Crowell.  It 
need  not  be  repeated  that  he  loved  the  lad  with  the 
whole  wealth  of  his  honest,  affectionate,  unselfish 
nature.  No  sacrifice  that  can  be  thought  of  would 
have  been  too  great  for  him  to  make  for  him.  He 
had  regretted  from  the  first  the  misfortune  that  made 
him  his  companion  in  the  Californian  wilds  after  the 
wrecking  of  the  Golden  Gate,  and  while  willing  to 
join  him  in  hunting  for  golden  nuggets  among  the 
numerous  streams,  he  was  always  nervously  anxious 
to  press  towards  San  Francisco  and  join  the  father 
of  the  lad.  He  bitterly  reflected  that  but  for  this 
meeting  with  Metcalf  they  would  be  well  advanced  at 
that  time  on  the  way.  Much  as  the  man  yearned  to 
obtain  wealth  for  the  sake  of  the  loved  ones  on  the 
other  side  of  the  ocean,  he  now  felt  as  if  he  never 
wished  to  look  upon  a  piece  of  gold  again.  It  was 
that  which  had  brought  this  dreadful  thing  upon  the 
little  fellow,  and  the  whole  yield  of  California  itself 
was  not  to  be  compared  with  his  welfare. 

55 


56  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

Naturally  resourceful  and  bright-witted,  the  Irish- 
man found  himself  now  engaged  upon  a  task  for 
which  his  lack 'of  experience  unfitted  him.  Believing 
that  the  two  Indians  whom  he  had  seen  earlier  in  the 
day  had  had  to  do  with  the  disappearance  of  Tim,  he 
meant  to  hunt  them  out  and  force  his  surrender.  The 
difficulty  of  making  himself  understood  in  conversa- 
tion did  not  deter  him.  He  would  find  out  the  truth 
by  some  means,  if  only  the  opportunity  could  be 
found. 

Think  of  Dennis  Murphy's  plight.  He  did  not 
know  which  way  to  turn  to  find  the  natives,  and  if  he 
should  succeed  in  coming  across  them  he  could  not 
make  them  understand  a  syllable  of  his  speech.  It 
would  seem  that,  compared  with  the  chances  of  suc- 
cess by  his  companion,  he  had  not  one  in  a  hundred; 
and  yet,  you  know,  it  is  often  the  unexpected  that 
happens. 

Had  he  followed  the  course  which  he  saw  the  two 
aborigines  take,  he  would  have  gone  over  land  that 
had  already  been  trodden.  There  was  no  clue  to 
their  direction,  and  though  a  master  of  woodcraft 
might  have  been  able  to  trace  them  even  across  the 
flinty  surface,  Dennis  had  not  the  skill  to  do  so.  He 
must  find  out  the  right  course,  if  it  were  possible,  by 
some  other  means. 

The  only  sign  he  could  discover  of  the  presence  of 
other  persons  in  the  neighborhood  was  that  thin  line 
of  vapour  rising  from  the  distant  elevation,  and 
thrown  in  relief  against  the  sky ;  but  Metcalf  had  told 
him  that  that  located  the  camp  of  white  men  whom 


A  CLUE.  57 

he  meant  to  visit,  and  Dennis  therefore  turned  his 
thoughts  elsewhere. 

"Now,"  mused  he,  "if  them  Injins  was  looking 
for  the  scalps  of  me  own  kind,  they  would  sneak  up 
to  that  camp  for  the  chance;  but  seeing  as  they  ain't 
looking  for  such  things  they'll  be  apt  to  take  another 
coorse,  as  the  boys  at  Donnybrook  used  to  do  whin 
they  caught  sight  of  me  drawing  nigh  wid  me 
shillelagh." 

It  cannot  be  said  that  this  was  brilliant  logic,  but 
it  was  the  principle  which  for  a  time  guided  the  Irish- 
man. So  it  came  about  that  he  and  his  friend  walked 
directly  away  from  each  other  until  fully  a  mile  lay 
between.  Dennis  gave  no  thought  to  the  precious 
metal.  Had  he  caught  sight  of -a  nugget  as  large  as  a 
hen's  egg  in  any  of  the  small  streams  across  which  he 
leaped,  he  would  not  have  stooped  to  pick  it  up.  He 
felt  a  loathing  of  that  which  was  already  in  his  pocket, 
including  the  yellow  coins  brought  with  him.  How 
petty  the  things  of  this  life  seem  when  weighed 
against  the  lives  of  those  that  are  near  and  dear  to  us ! 

He  was  still  plodding  laboriously  forward,  deeply 
depressed  in  spirits,  for  reflection  showed  slight 
ground  for  hope,  when,  while  skirting  a  growth  of  pine 
free  from  undergrowth,  he  suddenly  fancied  he  heard 
the  voice  of  some  person.  He  stopped  like  a  flash, 
and  looked  around.  It  was  as  if  a  single  exclamation 
had  been  uttered,  so  brief  and  so  faint  that  he  was 
uncertain  of  the  direction  whence  it  came. 

In  truth  it  seemed  to  have  sounded  in  the  air  above 
him,  and  he  gazed  curiously  upward,  but  saw  only  the 


58  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

blue  sky.  He  stood  like  a  statue,  all  his  faculties  ab- 
sorbed in  that  of  listening.  He  might  have  convinced 
himself  he  was  mistaken  and  it  was  only  fancy,  but 
for  the  fact  that  at  the  time  he  heard  the  voice  he  was 
not  in  an  expectant  mood  and  was  thinking  of  nothing 
of  the  kind. 

"There's  someone  not  far  away,"  he  whispered, 
"and,  if  he'll  only  be  kind  enough  to  spake  again,  I'll 
be  glad  to  make  his  acquaintance.  Whisht!" 

It  was  not  the  sense  of  hearing  but  of  smell  that 
caused  this  exclamation.  The  keen  nostrils  of  the 
Irishman  had  caught  the  faintest  possible  odour  of 
tobacco.  He  turned  slowly  round,  sniffing  as  he  did 
so.  It  was  lingering  about  him  beyond  mistake,  and 
by-and-by  he  learned  the  direction  in  which  it  was 
strongest.  It  did  not  seem  to  be  towards  the  point 
of  the  compass  whence  the  voice  had  sounded;  but, 
since  he  was  uncertain  on  that  point,  he  slowly  fol- 
lowed the  new  guide,  his  head  thrust  forward,  still 
sniffing  and  stepping  as  gently  as  if  afraid  of  awaking 
someone. 

By-and-by  the  odour  became  imperceptible.  This 
showed  that  it  had  been  wafted  aside  from  a  direct 
line,  and  he  was  following  the  wrong  course.  He 
paused  and  smelled  more  guardedly.  He  was  still  at 
a  loss,  when  from  the  other  side  of  a  rock  five  or  six 
feet  in  height,  he  saw  a  blue  twist  of  vapour  rising 
slowly  and  floating  off  to  the  right. 

"The  man  wid  the  pipe  is  behind  that  rock,  as  was 
said  of  me  second  cousin  whin  a  spark  dropped  from 
his  pipe  into  the  blast  at  the  quarry  and  he  had  come 


A  CLUE.  59 

down  again,  and  I  don't  mean  that  he  shall  git  away 
from  me." 

A  few  steps  took  him  past  a  stretch  of  pine  and 
the  rocks  beyond,  and  then  a  curious  sight  broke  upon 
him.  Two  Indians  were  lolling  on  the  ground,  one 
seemingly  asleep,  while  the  other  was  smoking  a  long- 
stemmed  pipe,  the  tobacco  of  which  gave  out  the 
odour  that  had  caught  the  Irishman's  attention; 
though  it  cannot  be  said  that  it  was  pleasant,  for  the 
weed  smoked  by  those  Californian  Indians  was  of  the 
worst  quality. 

The  couple  did  not  show  any  surprise  or  alarm  at 
sight  of  the  white  man.  They  did  not  even  rise  to 
their  feet;  but  the  one  who  had  been  dozing 
straightened  up  to  a  sitting  posture  beside  his  com- 
panion, and  both  looked  questioningly  at  their  caller. 
Dennis  was  glad  to  note  that  they  were  the  two  whom 
he  had  seen  earlier  in  the  day,  and  that  the  one  who 
had  been  sleeping  was  he  with  whom  he  had  held  his 
pantomimic  chat.  Dennis  had  been  hopeful,  too,  of 
seeing  Tim  and  Tige ;  but  one  glance  showed  that, 
wherever  they  were,  they  were  not  with  this  couple. 

The  two  long  bows  of  the  red  men  leaned  against 
the  rock  several  feet  away,  and  for  comfort  their 
quivers  had  been  laid  aside.  That  they  made  no 
move  towards  recovering  their  weapons  showed  that 
they  had  no  fear  of  the  white  man.  Fortunate  in 
that  respect  had  been  their  meeting  earlier  in  the 
day.  The  last  thought  in  the  mind  of  the  intruder 
was  that  of  injuring  the  couple,  unless  he  should  learn 
that  they  had  harmed  Tim. 


60  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

For  the  space  of  a  full  minute  the  little  black  eyes 
of  the  Indians  remained  fixed  upon  Dennis,  who  for 
the  same  time  looked  steadily  at  them,  as  if  trying 
to  read  their  thoughts.  He  was  striving  to  hold  him- 
self in  hand,  for  his  surging  emotions  made  his  tones 
tremulous  when  he  asked  the  pathetic  question : 

"Will  ye  tell  me  where  me  boy  is?  Me  heart  is 
breaking." 

The  one  whom  he  had  previously  met  rose  to  his 
feet,  advanced  a  couple  of  steps,  and  then  halting  said 
something  in  his  own  tongue.  It  cannot  be  supposed 
that  it  was  a  reply  to  the  question  asked,  and- Dennis 
could  form  no  idea  of  what  it  meant.  How  was  he  to 
make  his  meaning  clear?  At  the  time  of  their  pre- 
vious meeting  he  had  been  alone,  and  it  was  not  to  be 
supposed  that  Tim's  absence  now  would  be  noted, 
provided  that  the  couple  had  had  nothing  to  do  with 
it. 

Dennis  began  a  series  of  signs,  which  must  have 
been  meaningless  to  the  red  men.  He  indicated  the 
height  of  the  lad  by  holding  out  his  hand.  The 
listeners  may  have  caught  a  glimmer  of  the  meaning 
of  this ;  but  no  one  would  have  dreamed  of  the  signifi- 
cance of  the  gyrations  of  his  arms,  his  stamping  back 
and  forth,  and  his  spoken  questions  which  accom- 
panied the  gestures.  Seeing  their  wondering  looks, 
he  became  more  energetic  and  spoke  louder.  They 
replied  with  motions  that  signified  nothing  to  him, 
though  members  of  a  strange  tribe  would  have  caught 
the  messages. 

The  moment  came  when  he  was  compelled  to  give 


A  CLUE.  61 

up  in  despair.  He  ceased  his  movement,  and  ex- 
claimed in  a  pitiful  voice: 

"Is  there  no  way  I  can  spake  the  sorrow  in  me 
heart,  and  ask  them " 

And  then  the  strong  man  broke  down,  and  placing 
one  hand  over  his  face,  he  sobbed  as  if,  indeed,  his 
heart  was  breaking.  It  was  a  pitiful  picture,  but 
he  could  not  restrain  his  grief,  which  had  been  pent 
up  so  long. 

It  was  all  unintentional  on  his  part,  he  could  not 
help  it;  he  did  not  wish  to  act  like  a  child  before 
these  men,  who  are  taught  from  infancy  to  hide  all 
expressions  of  emotion  when  before  others,  but  the 
anguish  that  had  been  crushing  him  for  hours  broke 
all  bounds  and  would  not  be  checked. 

And  yet,  as  before,  it  was  the  unexpected  that 
happened.  While  Dennis  Murphy  would  have  done 
anything  in  his  power  to  hold  his  grief  in  hand,  his 
failure  to  do  so  accomplished  the  very  thing  he  was 
striving  for  and  that  was  wringing  his  heart.  The 
two  Indians,  staring  with  amazement  at  the  breaking 
down  of  the  strong  man,  failed  to  read  the  meaning 
of  his  vigorous  gestures;  but  they  at  least  suspected 
the  cause  of  his  anguish,  for  both,  had  they  pos- 
sessed the  power  of  speaking  English,  could  have 
given  him  the  information  he  was  seeking.  They 
knew  what  had  caused  the  disappearance  of  the  white 
boy,  and  were  ready  to  make  it  known  to  him. 

The  two  natives  talked  rapidly  for  a  minute  or 
two  to  each  other.  Then  the  acquaintance  of  Dennis 
caught  up  his  quiver  of  arrows,  slung  the  thong  over 


62  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

his  neck,  and  took  his  bow  in  hand.  He  next 
stepped  close  to  Dennis  and  spoke  again.  The  Irish- 
man had  partly  mastered  his  emotion,  and  looked 
wonderingly  at  him.  The  red  man  turned  and  walked 
three  or  four  steps,  then  looked  back  and  beckoned. 

"It's  aisy  to  understand  that,"  said  Dennis.  "He 
wants  me  to  follow  him  to  where  I  shall  larn  some- 
thing of  the  lad.  I'll  do  it,  if  it's  to  death !" 

Seeing  that  he  was  understood  the  Indian  strode 
more  briskly,  while  it  need  not  be  said  that  Dennis 
did  not  lag  behind.  The  other  red  man  stood  calmly 
looking  after  the  two,  .but  made  no  attempt  to  follow 
them. 

And  now,  while  Dennis  Murphy  is  in  a  fair  way 
to  learn  the  strange  truth  about  Tim  Crowell,  let  us 
see  whether  we  cannot  do  the  same. 


CHAPTER  VII 

AN   UNEXPECTED   PLUNGE 

ALL  the  boys  with  whom  I  am  acquainted  are  im- 
patient. Some  of  us  older  ones  have  the  same  fail- 
ing, but  I  think  we  learn  to  overcome  it  as  the  years 
pass,  and  I  hope  you  will  take  pains  to  do  the  same. 

Now,  Tim  Crowell  had  this  fault,  along  with  a  few 
others.  Thus  it  was  that,  after  following  the  stream 
which  branched  off  from  the  one  searched  by  his 
friend  Dennis  Murphy,  he  began  to  feel  annoyed 
over  his  failure  to  find  the  little  yellow  nuggets  that 
he  had  been  sure  of  picking  up  before  he  had  gone 
far.  Certainly  it  was  not  due  to  any  lack  of  effort 
on  his  part,  for  he  scanned  the  bed  of  the  brook 
whenever  the  current  was  smooth  enough  for  him  to 
see  the  clayey  or  rocky  bottom.  There  were  some 
places  where  the  dashing  waters  were  so  churned  into 
foam  and  froth  that  he  could  discern  nothing  below 
the  surface;  but  many  other  stretches  of  water  al- 
lowed the  fullest  use  of  his  eyes,  and  he  did  not  mind 
the  little  breaks. 

An  hour  passed  without  the  least  glimmer  of  suc- 
cess. Hope  had  not  been  awakened,  as  was  the  case 
with  Dennis,  by  sight  of  a  pebble  showing  anything 

63 


64  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

like  a  yellowish  tinge.  He  began  to  lose  patience, 
and  finally  came  to  a  halt. 

"Tige,  I  believe  we  have  found  all  the  gold  in 
California — at  least,  in  this  part,"  he  added,  struck 
by  the  absurdity  of  his  words.  "I'm  anxious  to  meet 
father,  and  I  don't  see  why  Mr.  Metcalf  and  Dennis 
don't  hurry  to  San  Francisco." 

While  he  was  engaged,  the  dog  was  also  occupied, 
trotting  up  and  down  the  bank  of  the  brook  and 
peering  into  it;  for  he  knew  as  well  as  did  Tim  him- 
self what  he  was  hunting  for,  but  one  was  no  more 
successful  than  the  other. 

Reflecting  over  the  matter,  Tim  felt  ashamed  to 
go  back  to  Dennis  with  word  that  he  had  so  soon 
grown  tired  of  the  search.  He  would  keep  at  it 
awhile  longer,  and  then,  if  he  found  nothing,  rejoin 
his  friend. 

"Tige,"  said  he,  "run  on  ahead  or,  better  still, 
hunt  out  some  other  stream,  for  that  will  give  us 
both  a  chance.  Don't  come  back  till  I  call  you; 
likely  you  will  do  better  than  I  by  looking  somewhere 
else." 

Nothing  loth,  the  dog  trotted  away,  understand- 
ing so  well  what  had  been  said  to  him  that  he  was 
sure  not  to  return  for  a  long  time,  unless  his  master 
summoned  him.  It  looked  like  a  wise  proceeding, 
for  the  dog,  the  boy  and  the  Irishman  were  now 
hunting  on  different  and  independent  lines,  with 
three  times  more  chances  of  success  than  if  they  did 
their  work  together. 

A  half-hour  more  exhausted  what  little  stock  of 


AN  UNEXPECTED  PLUNGE.  65 

patience  the  lad  had  left.  Pausing  on  the  edge  of 
the  stream,  his  face  took  on  an  expression  of  disgust. 

"I'm  not  going  to  hunt  any  more;  I'll  let  Tige 
keep  it  up  for  awhile,  for  he  has  better  eyesight  than 
any  of  us,  but  it  will  soon  be  noon,  and  I'm  getting 
hungry.  I'll  look  up  Dennis,  for  he  can't  be  far  off." 

Since  his  attention  was  now  wholly  withdrawn 
from  the  water,  the  lad  peered  keenly  ahead  to  note 
where  his  footsteps  led  him.  He  knew  the  general 
direction  of  the  other  branch  of  the  stream,  where  he 
was  certain  to  find  his  friend,  either  above  or  below 
the  point  where  he  should  reach  it. 

He  had  gone  perhaps  a  hundred  yards,  when  he 
caught  sight  of  the  two  Indians  who  had  left  Dennis 
Murphy  a  little  while  before.  They  were  not  coming 
directly  towards  the  lad,  but  moving  diagonally,  so 
that  if  they  kept  to  the  line  they  would  pass  several 
rods  to  his  left.  Tim  was  scared,  for  he  recalled  that 
affair  in  which  his  interference  saved  the  life  of  the 
miner,  and,  fearing  that  one  of  the  two  was  that 
savage,  he  did  not  wish  the  dusky  couple  to  see  him. 
Like  a  flash  he  dropped  to  the  ground  and  crawled 
far  enough  to  shelter  himself  behind  a  rock  not  much 
larger  than  himself.  The  aborigines  did  not  seem  to 
observe  him,  but  moved  forward,  paying  little  at- 
tention to  where  they  trod  for  they  must  have  been 
familiar  with  the  country.  They  were  talking,  and 
their  voices  had  an  odd,  jerky,  guttural  tone,  which 
the  listening  boy  plainly  heard.  Carefully  peering 
out  from  his  hiding  place,  he  noted  their  progress, 
which  continued  in  the  same  straight  line.  Had  they 


66  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

been  suspicious  of  anything  of  the  kind,  they  would 
have  had  little  trouble  in  locating  him,  for  he  was 
more  exposed  than  he  supposed.  From  what  has 
been  told,  it  is  not  likely  that  they  would  have  done 
him  any  harm,  but  Tim  was  only  prudent  when  he 
decided  to  take  no  chances. 

During  those  few  minutes  in  which  the  boy  lay  at 
full  length  on  the  ground,  he  became  aware  of  a 
singular  thing.  He  plainly  heard  the  gurgling,  rip- 
pling sound  of  flowing  water  below  him.  It  was  so 
faint  that  he  would  not  have  noticed  it  had  he  kept 
his  feet;  but  while  extended  it  was  too  clearly  im- 
pressed for  him  to  be  mistaken — a  current  was  sweep- 
ing beneath  him. 

"I  have  read  of  rivers  in  Africa  that,  after  flow- 
ing a  long  way  over  the  ground,  dip  out  of  sight,  and 
this  sounds  as  if  there  are  some  of  them  in  this  part 
of  the  world.  Mr.  Metcalf  said  something  about  one, 
but  I  don't  remember  what  it  was." 

With  the  fear  of  the  two  red  men  before  him, 
and  with  abundance  of  time  at  command,  Tim  re- 
mained stretched  on  the  earth,  even  after  all  danger 
had  gone.  He  raised  his  head  and  gazed  after  the 
couple  until  they  passed  from  sight,  and  then  he  once 
more  gave  his  attention  to  the  phenomenon  below 
him.  By  pressing  his  ear  against  the  ground  he 
could  hear  the  flowing  water  more  distinctly.  There 
must  have  been  a  large  volume,  and  it  seemed  to  be 
broad,  but  not  very  far  below  the  surface  of  the  earth. 

It  was,  in  brief,  a  Lost  River,  such  as  are  found  in 
certain  parts  of  the  South-west.  Some  of  them,  like 


AN  UNEXPECTED  PLUNGE.  67 

those  in  South  Africa,  flow  over  the  ground  until  ab- 
sorbed in  the  sands  of  the  desert.  Others  plunge  be- 
low, apparently  without  any  special  reason,  and,  after 
sweeping  some  distance,  come  out  into  the  sunlight 
again.  I  saw  one  river  that  did  this  twice  in  the 
course  of  a  few  hundred  miles,  finally  emerging  and 
finishing  its  run  as  every  well-regulated  river  should 
do. 

Tim  Crowell  was  lying  with  his  ear  pressed 
against  the  ground,  his  rifle  grasped  with  one  hand, 
listening  and  giving  rein  to  his  boyish  fancy,  when 
the  most  startling  thing  conceivable  took  place.  The 
shell  of  the  roof  of  the  lost  river  suddenly  broke 
through  and  he  fell  with  a  splash  into  the  current 
below. 

It  all  occurred  in  a  twinkling,  and  before  he  could 
cry  out  or  make  any  effort  to  save  himself.  The 
ground  which  so  suddenly  gave  way  was  fifteen  or 
twenty  feet  in  diameter,  of  rough,  irregular  outline, 
so  that  had  he  flung  out  his  arms  and  legs  in  the 
effort  to  seize  something  to  stay  his  fall,  it  would  have 
done  no  good,  for  all  that  he  could  reach  with  ex- 
tended arms  went  down  with  him. 

The  roof  of  the  river,  as  we  may  call  it,  was  no 
more  than  a  foot  through  at  that  spot,  though  much 
thicker  elsewhere.  The  rock  behind  which  Tim  had 
sheltered  himself  went  down  with  him,  sending  the 
spray  flying  in  all  direction  as  it  struck  the  stream 
and  plunged  to  the  bottom.  Dirt  and  gravel  fol- 
lowed, and  there  was  a  stream  of  it  dripping  through 
the  gloom  long  after  the  lad  had  been  swept  past. 


68  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

As  nearly  as  can  be  determined  Tim  Crowell  fell 
about  twenty-five  feet  before  striking  the  water. 
The  fall  was  not  sufficient  to  harm  him,  but  it  carried 
him  a  dozen  feet  below  the  surface,  and  would  have 
carried  him  further  had  not  his  feet  touched  bottom. 
He  was  an  excellent  swimmer  for  his  years>  and  the 
plunge  was  no  greater  than  he  had  taken  many  a 
time  when  diving  in  the  old  mill  pond  at  his  home  in 
the  East;  but  when  he  found  that  he  would  have  to 
swim  for  his  life,  he  let  go  of  his  rifle,  which  would 
have  greatly  hindered  him,  and  it  went  to  the  bottom 
and  stayed  there.  This  left  him  the  free  use  of  his 
limbs,  and  he  lost  no  time  in  bringing  them  into  play. 

Blowing  the  water  from  his  mouth  and  shaking 
his  eyes  clear  of  the  mist,  he  peered  around  in  the 
gloom.  Fast  sweeping  backward  was  the  opening 
through  which  he  had  taken  his  involuntary  dive, 
looking  jagged  and  yellow  in  the  sunlight,  while  in 
every  other  direction  was  blank  darkness.  He  could 
form  no  idea  of  the  width  of  the  lost  river,  nor  how 
far  it  went  or  what  direction  it  followed.  A  few 
minutes  later,  when  he  glanced  over  his  shoulder,  he 
failed  to  see  the  opening.  The  current  was  swift, 
and  was  bearing  him  whither?  The  most  powerful 
swimmer  could  have  made  no  headway  against  it,  and 
he  did  not  waste  his  strength  in  the  effort,  since,  had 
he  succeeded,  it  promised  no  benefit. 

He  would  have  been  a  strange  lad  had  he  not 
done  a  vast  amount  of  thinking  while  borne  resist- 
lessly  downward. 

"Suppose    the    black    roof    comes    down    till    it 


AN  UNEXPECTED  PLUNGE.  69 

touches  the  water;  then  I  shall  have  no  chance  to 
breathe." 

This  fear  distressed  him,  but  when  he  had  floated 
some  distance,  with  his  limbs  moving  just  enough  to 
keep  afloat,  the  dread  passed;  and  then  he  wondered 
whether  the  stream  had  an  underground  communica- 
tion with  the  Pacific,  a  dozen  or  so  miles  distant,  into 
which  he  would  emerge,  helpless  and  doomed. 

It  might  be  that  there  was  some  subterranean 
waterfall  or  cascade  over  which  the  river  dashed  and 
in  which  he  would  surely  be  strangled;  or  it  might 
be  that  the  waters  would  be  gradually  absorbed  by 
the  earth  itself,  and  he  would  b'e  left  underground 
with  no  means  of  escape.  The  current  was  so  cold 
that  he  gasped  when  he  sank ;  but  he  soon  became 
accustomed  to  the  chill,  and  gave  it  no  thought. 

We  can  become  used  to  almost  everything,  and 
after  a  time  Tim  began  making  what  might  be  called 
experiments.  While  floating  he  dropped  his  feet  to 
see  whether  he  could  touch  bottom.  The  third  time 
he  did  this  his  toe  grazed  over  what  must  have  been 
a  projection,  for  it  was  gone  in  an  instant.  Then  he 
turned  slightly  to  the  right,  swimming  slowly  and  ex- 
tending a  hand  in  front,  groping  for  what  might  be 
considered  the  bank.  There  seemed  so  much  risk 
in  this  that  he  was  afraid  to  keep  it  up  long. 

Suddenly,  without  warning,  he  collided  so  vio- 
lently with  something  that  he  was  partly  stunned. 
He  instinctively  flung  out  his  arms  and  threw  them 
around  the  object  that  checked  his  progress  and  held 
him  motionless.  It  was  the  point  of  a  rock  that  pro- 


70  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

jected  from  the  side  of  the  river,  which  he  had  ap- 
proached and  which  he  was  able  to  seize  with  a 
vigour  that  checked  his  downward  drift. 

The  dashing  of  the  water  around  his  body  told 
how  swift  the  current  was,  and  he  had  to  hold  hard 
to  avoid  being  wrenched  away  again.  It  cost  no 
great  effort  to  lift  himself  free  of  the  stream  and  to 
crouch  on  the  support  that  had  obtruded  itself  across 
his  path. 

"Here  I  am  at  last,"  he  exclaimed,  "but  what 
good  can  it  do  me  to  hold  on  ?  I  can't  stay  for  ever, 
and  Dennis  and  Mr.  Metcalf  will  never  think  of  look- 
ing for  me  in  this  spot,  and,  if  they  did,  how  could 
they  reach  me  ?" 

His  eyes  had  become  accustomed  to  the  gloom; 
but,  where  all  light  was  shut  out,  it  would  have  been 
impossible  for  an  owl  to  discern  anything.  It  seemed 
to  him,  however,  as  he  peered  down  stream,  that  he 
could  detect  just  the  faintest  possible  lighting  up  of 
the  darkness.  It  might  be  only  fancy,  but  when  he 
turned  his  eyes  away  and  suddenly  brought  them 
back,  the  almost  imperceptible  glow  was  there. 

What  could  it  mean?  Did  it  indicate  an  opening 
where  the  lost  river  once  more  emerged  into  the  sun- 
light? If  so,  he  had  good  reason  to  hope;  but  it 
might  mark  another  break  in  the  roof,  which  was  so 
far  beyond  reach  that  it  could  be  of  no  benefit  to  him. 

There  is  one  thing,  however,  that  a  rugged  young- 
ster is  always  capable  of  doing.  It  is  hard  to  imagine 
a  situation  in  which  he  cannot  make  use  of  his  voice. 
Tim  uttered  a  number  of  shouts  and  yells  that  would 


AN .  UNEXPECTED .  PL  UNGE.  71 

have  done  credit  to  an  Indian  warrior.  He  -called  the 
name  of  Dennis,  of  Mr.  Metcalf,  and  of  Tige.  In 
every  instance  a  clear  echo  came  back  from  the  op- 
posite shore — so  clear,  in  fact,  that  it  gave  him  an  odd 
feeling  of  fear,  which  made  him  hesitate  before  re- 
peating the  call.  It  was  not  long  before  he  saw  the 
uselessness  of  such  hails,  for  it  was  impossible  that 
a  voice  tenfold  stronger  than  his  should  find  its  way 
upward  through  that  massive  roof  of  rocks  and  earth 
to  the  outside  world. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

A    FAITHFUL    FRIEND 

No  boy  ever  found  himself  in  a  more  alarming  situa- 
tion than  Tim  Crowell  while  clinging  to  the  project- 
ing rock  at  the  side  of  the  lost  river,  in  the  darkness 
of  the  underground  flow  of  the  stream.  In  whatever 
direction  he  peered  he  was  met  by  the  same  im- 
penetrable gloom,  the  only  exception  being  down  the 
current,  where  the  light  was  so  faint  as  to  be  almost 
imperceptible.  The  important  question  he  asked 
himself  again  and  again  was  whether  that  glow,  if 
glow  it  was,  meant  that  the  river  debouched  in  the 
sunlight  after  sweeping  so  far  under  the  surface  of 
the  earth.  If  it  did>  the  only  thing  for  him  to  do  was 
to  leap  into  the  current  again  and  float  downward, 
with  a  possible  chance  of  being  able  to  make  a  landing. 

But  if  it  had  no  such  significance,  what  could  he 
gain  by  staying  where  he  was?  No  outcries  that  he 
could  make  would  reach  his  friends  above,  and  if 
they  did  there  were  no  means  by  which  they  could 
help  him.  He  was  powerless  to  make  his  way  for  a 
single  stroke  against  the  current,  but  must  be  borne 
downward  whither  it  chose  to  carry  him.- 

With  his  senses  strung  to  the  highest  tension,  he 
72 


A  FAITHFUL  FRIEND.  73 

plainly  heard  the  rippling  dash  of  the  waters  around 
him,  as  they  struck  some  obstruction,  and  now  and 
then  the  noise  appeared  to  come  from  the  other  side 
of  the  river.  If  he  was  not  mistaken  in  this,  the 
stream  was  more  than  a  hundred  yards  in  width; 
while  its  depth,  as  he  had  learned  when  his  plunge 
carried  him  to  the  bottom,  \vas  enough  to  warrant 
the  name  of  a  river. 

Suddenly  from  out  this  world  of  gloom  a  new 
sound  broke  upon  his  ear.  It  was  the  barking  of  a 
dog,  and  it  came  from  a  point  above  him ! 

"It's  Tige!"  exclaimed  the  boy.  "He  has  found 
out  what  has  happened  to  me,  and  is  trying  to  help 
me." 

Such  was  the  fact,  and  you  must  now  understand 
what  had  taken  place  above  ground.  The  dog  had 
returned  from  his  fruitless  hunt  after  gold,  and  the 
sight  of  the  hole  in  the  ground  and  the  noise  of  the 
rushing  waters  below  told  him  what  had  happened 
to  his  young  master.  There  must  have  been  strange 
imaginings  in  that  canine  brain  and  deep  distress  at 
his  inability  to  aid  the  one  for  whom  he  was  ready  at 
any  time  to  give  his  life.  He  made  off  to  notify  his 
friends  of  the  disaster,  but  he  was  in  a  panic  and  did 
not  know  what  to  do.  When  near  Dennis  Murphy 
and  the  miner  he  emitted  the  bark  which  they  heard, 
and  then  dashed  back  again,  without  showing  himself 
to  the  couple.  Ordinarily,  he  would  have  waited  to 
make  sure  they  were  following  him,  but  now  he  was 
too  frantic  to  do  so.  Back  again  he  bounded  to  the 
opening  in  the  ground,  and,  seeing  that  he  was  still 


74  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

alone,  hesitated  not  a  moment.  Straight  through  the 
hole  he  dived  into  the  rushing  river  below,  his  only 
instinct  being  to  find  his  master  and  give  him  what 
aid  he  could. 

But  in  that  realm  of  darkness  he  could  see  nothing 
to  guide  him  while  he  swam  downward.  By-and-by 
he  barked,  and  it  was  that  signal  which  reached  the 
ear  of  Tim  Crowell,  perched  on  the  pointed  rock  at 
the  side  of  the  lost  river. 

"Never  did  anybody  ever  have  so  faithful  a 
friend,"  said  the  grateful  lad,  with  a  lump  in  his 
throat;  "if  I  am  saved,  it  will  be  you,  Tige,  that  does 
it." 

Then  he  shouted  the  name  of  the  pet,  and  the 
answering  bark  told  he  had  been  heard.  Tige  had 
located  him,  and  ploughed  through  the  water  diagon- 
ally towards  the  spot  where  he  knew  his  master  was 
waiting.  The  animal  continued  barking,  and  Tim 
kept  up  his  calling.  The  distance  between  the  two 
rapidly  lessened.  By-and-by  Tim  knew  his  friend 
was  at  hand,  for  he  could  hear  him  rushing  through 
the  water.  Reaching  down,  he  seized  the  abundant 
hair  of  the  upper  part  of  the  neck,  slipped  his  fingers 
under  the  collar — the  dog  helping  all  he  could — and 
then,  by  their  united  efforts,  the  friend  clambered 
up  beside  him  on  the  rock. 

They  could  not  see  each  other;  but  the  moment 
Tim  knew  the  dog  was  secure,  he  put  his  arm  around 
his  neck,  pressed  his  head  close  to  his  body,  and 
kissed  him  between  his  eyes.  Tige  whined  with 
pleasure,  and  in  return  licked  his  face.  They  were 


A  FAITHFUL  FRIEND.  75 

together,  but  was  the  situation  of  the  boy  better  than 
before?  It  was  no  shame  to  him  that,  with  his  arm 
lovingly  enclosing  his  faithful  friend,  he  gave  way 
to  his  emotion  and  sobbed  as  if  his  heart  was  break- 
ing. Tige  showed  his  sympathy  by  whining  and  still 
licking  his  face;  but  even  he,  with  all  his  wonderful 
sagacity,  could  show  no  way  by  which  to  help  the  one 
who  was  so  dear  to  him.  tCould  he  have  done  so,  is 
it  to  be  supposed  he  would  have  faltered  for  one 
moment,  no  matter  what  the  sacrifice  involved? 

"You  didn't  fall  through  that  hole  like  me,"  said 
Tim,  when  he  had  rallied.  "You  knew  I  had  tumbled 
into  it,  and  you  jumped  after  me.  I  wonder  whether 
any  dog  in  the  world  would  do  as  much  for  his 
master." 

The  arrival  of  Tige  brought  new  thoughts.  If  he, 
coming  upon  the  opening  in  the  earth,  read  the  truth, 
would  not  the  two  men  do  the  same?  Undoubtedly 
they  would ;  but,  again,  what  possible  good  could  fol- 
low? They  would  not  attempt  to  join  him,  for  the 
certain  result  of  that  would  be  to  place  three  where 
there  was  now  only  one  in  imminent  peril. 

Tim  spent  a  long,  long  time  in  studying  over  the 
situation  and  in  trying  to  figure  out  some  way  of  help- 
ing himself.  It  was  useless,  for  the  result  in  every 
instance  was  to  come  back  to  the  conviction  that 
there  remained  only  the  one  thing  to  do — commit 
himself  again  to  the  current,  which  might  bear  him 
to  safety,  or,  what  seemed  more  likely,  to  destruction. 
Again  and  again  he  asked  God  to  direct  ham,  and  the 
moment  came  when  all  doubt  passed  away. 


76  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

"Let's  get  ready,"  he  said  to  his  companion;  "I'm 
going  to  swim  again,  Tige,  and  you  must  keep  with 
me." 

The  dog  understood  what  was  meant  when  his 
master  let  himself  carefully  down  into  the  water,  and, 
hanging  for  a  moment  with  his  feet  sweeping  almost 
horizontally  down  stream,  let  go. 

"Come,  Tige!"  he  called,  and  the  dog  was 
scarcely  a  moment  behind  him  in  taking  the  leap. 
At  the  first  striking  out  of  his  arms  one  hand  touched 
the  shaggy  side  of  Tige,  who  kept  swimming  close 
beside  his  master. 

"Let's  work  away  from  shore,"  suggested  the  boy, 
afraid  that  he  might  collide  with  some  of  the  ob- 
structions near  the  bank.  There  was  no  way  of  tell- 
ing precisely  where  they  were;  but  when  he  guessed 
it  was  near  the  middle,  he  merely  kept  afloat,  aban- 
doning himself  to  the  power  of  the  river,  his  comrade 
doing  the  same. 

With  a  thrill  o'f  hope  the  lad  saw  that  the  dull 
glow  which  had  caught  his  eye  some  time  before  was 
slowly  growing. 

"There's  some  kind  of  opening,"  he  thought,  "but 
I'm  afraid  it's  only  a  hole  like  the  one  I  fell  through." 

Tige  showed  that  the  light  had  caught  his  notice, 
for  he  whined  and  barked  once,  and  acted  as  if  he 
wished  to  swim  towards  it ;  but,  seeing  that  his  master 
made  no  effort,  he  gave  up  the  attempt. 

By-and-by  the  light  so  increased  that  Tim  dis- 
cerned the  roof,  or  arch,  of  the  lost  river,  as  it  was 
thrown  in  relief  against  the  glow  of  the  sky  beyond. 


A  FAITHFUL  FRIEND.  77 

The  curve  of  earth  was  fully  a  hundred  yards  across, 
with  the  central  portion,  or  key,  some  twenty  feet 
above  the  current.  It  was  irregular  and  uncouth  of 
form,  with  numerous  roots  of  trees  twisted  and  hang- 
ing downward,  like  so  many  serpents,  groping  for  the 
moisture  that  was  running  to  waste. 

All  doubt  was  gone;  the  river  emerged  into  the 
sunlight,  and  the  arch  came  to  an  end.  But  Tim 
feared  that  it  soon  took  another  plunge  into  the 
bowels  of  the  mountain. 

"The  first  chance  I  see  to  get  out  of  this,"  he  said, 
with  compressed  lips,  "I'm  going  to  grab  on  to  some- 
thing and  get  out!" 

He  Was  alarmed  to  observe,  while  sweeping  to- 
wards daylight,  that  the  banks  on  both  sides,  instead 
of  being  shallow  and  easily  climbed,  were  perpendicu- 
lar bluffs,  some  of  which  were  fifty  feet  in  height.  So 
far  as  he  saw,  he  could  no  more  climb  them  than  he 
could  make  his  way  up  the  side  of  a  house;  but  he 
was  resolved  to  put  forth  his  best  effort,  and,  with 
Tige  sticking  close  beside  him,  he  swam  to  the  right, 
keeping  as  close  to  the  bluffs  as  he  could  without  rub- 
bing against  them. 

When  he  shot  out  into  the  sunlight  he  blinked 
and  could  hardly  see.  He  had  been  in  darkness  so 
long  that  the  glare  was  overpowering  for  some  min- 
utes ;  for,  you  know,  it  takes  the  pupil  a  brief  while 
to  become  accustomed  to  marked  changes  of  light 
and  gloom.  The  difficulty  soon  passed,  and  he  held 
himself  alert  for  the  first  advantage. 

He   noticed  that  the   water  around   him   was  as 


78  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

clear  as  crystal.  The  sun  was  well  down  the  sky,  for 
he  had  been  underground  longer  than  he  supposed. 
A  glance  upward  failed  to  show  a  single  cloud;  for, 
as  you  know,  the  weather  was  perfect.  .  Tim,  how- 
ever, gave  little  heed  to  all  this.  His  whole  thought 
and  energy  were  concentrated  upon  the  impending 
effort  to  free  himself  from  the  grasp  of  the  lost  river. 

Suddenly  he  saw  his  chance.  The  base  of  the 
bluff  reached  out  into  the  stream,  with  several  feet 
showing  just  above  the  current.  There  ought  to  be 
no  difficulty  in  seizing  hold  of  this  and  checking  him- 
self, for  without  further  effort  he  must  be  swept 
within  easy  reach. 

"That's  the  spot!"  he  called  to  Tige,  indicating  it 
by  a  nod  of  his  head.  "We  must  land  there." 

The  dog  acted  as  if  he  understood,  and  fell  behind 
to  give  his  master  the  first  chance.  It  was  a  mis- 
take; for,  had  he  taken  the  lead,  he  would  not  only 
have  landed  himself,  but  would  have  been  able  to 
help  his  master.  As  it  was,  when  Tim  reached  out 
and  tried  to  grasp  the  rough  surface,  his  fingers 
slipped,  and  in  a  twinkling  he  was  below  the  pro- 
jection, which  could  be  of  no  help  to  him. 

The  failure  did  not  discourage  him,  and  he  began 
searching  for  another  chance  to  leave  the  stream. 
The  first  glance  showed  a  second  obtrusion  of  rock 
similar  to  the  first,  but,  if  anything,  more  favourable. 
The  stone  sloped  downward  and  out  into  the  water 
for  a  yard,  when  it  dipped  under.  Tim  swam  close 
into  shore,  so  as  to  be  sure  of  colliding  with  it,  and 
braced  himself  for  the  shock,  which  came  the  next 


A  FAITHFUL  FRIEND.  79 

minute,  The  point  of  rock  continued  some  distance 
outward,  only  a  few  inches  below  the  surface,  as  was 
shown  by  the  rippling  of  the  current  against  and  over 
it.  The  swimmer  "backed  water"  all  he  could,  but 
struck  the  obstruction  so  hard  that  he  was  consider- 
ably bruised;  but  this  time  he  held  fast  and  drew 
himself  clear,  with  Tige  at  his  side. 

"Thank  Heaven!"  was  the  fervent  cry  of  the  boy 
the  moment  he  felt  he  was  free  from  the  grip  of  the 
cruel  current.  "We  are  safe,  Tige;  ain't  you  glad?" 

He  threw  his  arms  around  the  dog  again,  and  the 
animal  showed  his  thankfulness  by  several  barks,  after 
which  he  shook  his  shaggy  hide,  sending  the  spray 
flying  in  every  direction. 

Aye,  they  were  delivered  from  the  lost  river,  and 
the  boy  gave  his  attention  to  his  new  situation,  with  the 
result  that  his  high  hopes  were  nearly  dashed  at  the 
discovery  that  there  was  no  way  of  leaving  the  spot. 
The  sloping  rock  extended  backward  for  eight  or  ten 
feet  from  the  margin  of  the  stream,  when  it  ended 
directly  against  the  face  of  the  bluff,  which  rose 
nearly  twenty  feet  above  his  head,  as  straight  upward 
as  the  side  of  a  brick  wall.  It  seemed,  in  short,  to  be 
a  break  in  the  bluff,  which  enclosed  it  on  three  sides, 
as  if  someone  had  gouged  out  the  path  for  the  short 
distance. 

Tim  Crowell  was,  therefore,  still  imprisoned,  the 
only  way  of  freeing  himself  being  as  before.  He 
must  take  again  to  the  water,  trusting  to  the  good 
fortune  of  reaching  a  place  which  would  allow  him  to 
climb  to  the  top  of  the  bluff;  but  to  do  this  involved 


8o  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

a  risk  from  which  he  shrank,  because  of  his  fear  that 
the  river  dipped  again  underground,  and  he  would  be 
swept  to  death  before  he  could  check  himself. 

He  came  back  to  the  outermost  point  of  the  support, 
and,  carefully  steadying  himself,  looked  down  stream. 
The  sight  that  met  his  gaze  was  what  he  dreaded. 
The  river  did  pass  under  another  arch  several  hun- 
dred yards  away,  with  the  probability  that  once  again 
in  its  embrace  he  would  have  no  means  of  escaping  it. 

"We'll  never  try  it,  Tige,"  he  said,  patting  the 
head  of  his  comrade,  "no  matter  how  long  we  have  to 
stay  here." 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE   UPPER  LEVEL 

TIM  CROWELL  was  safe  from  the  embrace  of  the  lost 
river,  but  was  in  a  woeful  plight.  He  had  lost  his 
rifle  beyond  recovery,  he  was  chilly  and  famished,  his 
clothing  was  saturated,  and  there  was  no  possible  way 
of  leaving  the  spot  without  help.  The  nimblest 
monkey  or  chimpanzee  cannot  climb  twenty  feet  of 
smooth  perpendicular  wall  which  offers  not  the  slight- 
est foothold.  He  drew  out  his  pocket-knife  in  the 
weak  hope  of  being  able  to  cut  crevices  in  the  flinty 
sandstone  for  his  hands  and  feet>  but  he  quickly  saw 
that  it  would  be  the  case  of  the  rat  which  gnawed  the 
file :  he  didn't  hurt  the  file,  while  his  own  teeth  were 
ground  away.  A  score  of  knives  would  not  have 
been  of  the  slightest  use. 

"No  hope  in  that,"  he  said,  with  a  sigh,  closing 
the  blade  and  thrusting  it  back  into  his  pocket;  "but, 
no  matter  what  happens,  I  shan't  trust  myself  to  that 
stream  again." 

The  bright-witted  lad  thought  of  a  scheme  which 
offered  a  ray  of  hope,  though  he  could  not  bring  him- 
self to  try  it.  That  was  to  order  Tige  to  plunge  into 
the  current  and  swim  till  he  came  upon  a  spot  where 
he  could  climb  to  the  top  of  the  bluff,  and  then  to 

81 


82  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

hunt  up  Dennis  Murphy  and  the  miner,  and  bring 
them  back  with  him. 

Several  reasons  prevented  the  boy  testing  the  plan. 
With  all  his  faith  in  the  intelligence  of  Tige,  he 
doubted  whether  he  could  make  him  fully  under- 
stand his  wishes.  He  might  force  him  into  the  water, 
without  his  knowing  for  what  purpose,  though  it  was 
not  impossible  that  he  would  solve  his  meaning,  and, 
climbing  out  again,  hurry  off  after  their  friends. 

It  was  not  his  distrust  of  the  ability  of  the  canine, 
but  another  reason  which  held  back  Tim.  Tige 
might  try  to  do  all  that  was  needed,  but  suppose  he 
should  find  himself  unable  to  leave  the  current  after 
entering  it.  He  would  be  carried  underground  again, 
and  that  would  be  the  last  of  him. 

"You  have  done  too  much  for  me,"  said  Tim, 
shaking  his  head,  "to  allow  you  to  take  so  great  a 
risk.  No,  Tige;  we  sink  or  swim  together." 

It  pleases  me  to  say  that  in  some  respects  the  lad 
showed  a  prudence  that  hardly  would  have  been  ex- 
pected from  one  of  his  years.  The  afternoon  was  so 
well  forward  that  the  air  was  chilly.  He  shivered 
when  he  removed  his  garments  one  by  one  and  wrung 
out  all  the  moisture  he  could,  and  rubbed  his  body 
with  his  rough  coat  and  trousers  until  his  skin  glowed. 
Then,  donning  his  clothes  again,  he  danced  and  dis- 
ported himself  on  his  narrow  platform,  not  stopping 
until  tired  and  perspiring.  Whenever  the  chill  began 
returning,  he  repeated  the  violent  exercise.  It  was 
a  wise  thing  to  do,  and  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  it 
prevented  serious  results  from  his  long  exposure. 


THE  UPPER  LEVEL.  83 

Since  Dennis  always  carried  the  matches,  Tim  had 
no  means  of  kindling  a  fire,  even  had  he  possessed 
any  fuel.  Sticks  and  bits  of  wood  floated  past,  and 
now  and  then  one  of  them  struck  the  projecting  point 
of  rock  and  spun  by,  but  they  were  too  soggy  to  be 
used,  and  he  gave  no  thought  to  them. 

He  could  not  help  often  looking  upward  to  the  top 
of  the  bluffs  and  sighing: 

"If  there  were  only  some  way  of  getting  there! 
Tige,  can't  you  jump  it?" 

It  was  a  sorry  jest,  to  which  the  dog  gave  no  heed. 

When  the  decreasing  light  showed  that  the  after- 
noon was  drawing  to  a  close,  Tim  made  his  prepara- 
tions for  spending  the  night  in  the  lonely  spot.  Tige, 
without  direction  from  him,  stretched  himself  between 
his  master  and  the  water,  so  as  to  prevent  the  boy 
rolling  into  it  while  asleep,  and  Tim  cuddled  down 
beside  him;  but  though  he  was  tired,  he  found  him- 
self unable  to  sleep.  His  hunger  may  have  been 
partly  the  cause  of  this;  but  the  real  reason  was  his 
intense  sense  of  the  situation,  and  his  continual  effort 
to  think  out  some  way  of  helping  himself. 

It  would  seem  that  no  situation  could  have  been 
simpler.  He  was  safe  against  all  present  danger; 
but  «there  was  no  chance  of  escape  without  the  help 
of  friends,  for  not  once  was  his  resolution  not  to 
enter  the  stream  weakened. 

The  question,  therefore,   resolved  itself   into  the 
single  one  of  whether  he  could  feel  any  hope  of  his 
,  friends  finding  him. 
{,       "They  will  be  sure  to  come  upon  that  hole  in  the 


84  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

ground  by  to-morrow;  they  will  know  that  I  fell 
through  it,  and  because  they  don't  see  anything  of 
Tige,  they  will  think  he  went  with  me.  They'll  under- 
stand that  if  we  weren't  drowned,  I  must  have  been 
swept  down  to  this  break  in  the  river;  they'll  follow 
and  look  for  me,  and,  if  I  don't  starve  to  death  before 
they  come,  they'll  find  me  after  awhile.  How  did  I 
come  to  forget  it?" 

When  underground  he  had  whooped  and  whistled 
in  vain.  Now  he  was  in  the  outer  air,  where  his 
signals  could  reach  a  long  way,  and  he  had  not  thought 
of  trying  them  until  this  moment.  Rising  to  his 
feet,  he  placed  his  forefinger  and  thumb  against  the 
end  of  his  tongue  and  emitted  several  blasts  that 
might  well  have  been  mistaken  for  the  screeching  of 
a  locomotive  whistle.  He  had  employed  the  same 
signal  for  years,  and  if  it  should  reach  the  ears  of 
Dennis  Murphy  he  would  recognize  it  on  the  instant. 

When  the  boy  ceased  and  heard  a  sound  similar 
to  the  one  he  had  just  made,  he  supposed  it  was  the 
echo,  but  that  which  immediately  followed  was  any- 
thing but  an  echo. 

"Hulloa!  where  are  ye?" 

"Here,  Dennis!  Hurry  up!"  shouted  the  boy,  wild 
with  joy.  Tige,  too,  knew  the  voice  and  uttered  sev- 
eral delighted  barkings. 

"I'm  coming,  as  Mickey  Dougherty  said  to  the 
crowd  below  him  whin  he  fell  off  the  roof." 

By  continuously  whistling,  the  Irishman  was 
directed  along  the  bluffs,  until  finally  he  paused  di- 
rectly over  the  lad,  and,  looking  down,  saw  him  and 


THE  UPPER  LEVEL.  85 

the  dog  in  the  gathering  gloom.  The  happy  fellow 
called  out: 

"Bjefore  I  prosade  any  further,  I  wish  to  know  if 
it  is  yersilf,  or  some  spalpeen  that  is  trying  to  play  a 
mane  trick  on  me." 

"It's  Tim,  sure  enough;  but,  Dennis,  I  don't  see 
how  Tige  and  I  are  ever  going  to  climb  up  there 
where  you  are." 

"Let  Tige  fasten  his  teeth  in  yer  hair  and  pull  ye 
out  till  ye're  long  enough  to  raich  me  hand;  but  I 
fear  me  the  distance  is  too  great,  as  me  frinds  used 
to  find  whin  they  tried  to  jump  wid  me." 

"Where  is  Mr.  Metcalf?" 

Dennis  looked  around,  as  if  he  had  not  thought  of 
his  friend  before. 

"He  was  with  me  a  wee  bit  ago,  and  can't  be  far 
off.  Him  and  me  will  find  some  way  of  getting  ye 
out  of  that  place,  so  do  ye  have  patience.  Did  ye 
jump  down  that  hole  on  purpose,  Tim?" 

"What  a  question!  The  ground  broke  through 
with  me,  when  I  had  not  thought  of  such  a  thing. 
You  must  have  known  when  you  saw  the  place  how  it 
was." 

"I  didn't  obsarve  the  same  till  a  gintleman,  who 
happened  to  be  an  Injin,  showed  me  the  opening,  and 
then  I  knowed  how  it  was.  Tige  didn't  go  down  wid 
ye,  for  we  heerd  him  bark  after  we  missed  ye." 

"Xo;  he  saw  what  had  happened  to  me,  and  he 
followed.  We  have  been  together  since,  and  man- 
aged to  climb  out  into  this  place,  but  here  we  are 
stuck." 


86  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

"So  it  looks,  as  the  fly  said  whin  he  fell  into  the 
'lasses;  but,  ye  won't  have  to  stay  long — not  more 
than  a  wake  at  the  most." 

A  few  minutes  later  Metcalf  joined  his  friend 
above.  There  was  still  enough  light  to  see  the  boy 
and  dog  below,  and  leaning  over,  he  greeted  them, 
and  expressed  his  delight  at  finding  Tim  had  escaped, 
after  the  two  had  almost  given  up  hope. 

"I  suppose  you  have  no  objection  to  coming  up 
here  and  joining  us,  Tim?" 

"I  wish  you  would  show  me  the  way  to  do  so," 

"It  won't  take  long  to  fix  that.  Here,  Dennis, 
give  me  your  help." 

It  will  be  recalled  that  the  men  had  a  couple  of 
blankets,  one  of  which  was  presented  to  Tim  by  the 
miner,  who  now  proceeded  to  tie  the  two  together  at 
the  corners.  When  the  knot  was  made  sufficiently 
secure,  he  lowered  the  home-made  rope,  which 
descended  so  low  that  the  boy  could  easily  reach  it 
by  standing  on  his  toes. 

"Make  your  hold  sure,"  called  Metcalf. 

"I  can  do  that  easy  enough,  but  what  about  Tige  ?" 

"Put  him  in  one  of  yer  pockets,"  which  suggestion 
of  Dennis's  was  so  out  of  place  that  Metcalf  added: 

"Don't  think  we  are  going  to  forget  him.  Do 
as  I  tell  you." 

Gripping  the  blanket  with  both  hands,  Tim  gave 
the  word,  and  the  man  quickly  lifted  him  to  the  sur- 
face, where  Dennis  caught  him  in  his  arms,  and, 
though  he  tried  to  talk  in  his  jocular  fashion,  he 


THE  UPPER  LEVEL.  87 

finally  broke  down  and  wept  from  very  joy,  and  Tim 
could  not  help  doing  the  same. 

Meanwhile,  Metcalf  was  glad  of  the  excuse  iof 
paying  no  attention  to  the  two,  and  giving  it  all  to 
the  dog.  Lying  flat  on  his  face,  he  leaned  over  and 
lowered  the  blanket  as  far  as  he  could.  His  change 
of  posture  enabled  him  to  let  the  rope  descend  a  foot 
farther  than  before. 

"Bite  it,  Tige!  Bite  it!  Hold  fast!"  called  the 
miner. 

Il  was  no  wonderful  sagacity  on  the  part  of  the 
brute  that  told  him  what  all  this  meant.  Catching  a 
corner  of  the  lower  blanket  between  his  jaws,  he  held 
on  like  a  bull-dog.  As  soon  as  Metcalf  felt  his 
weight,  he  said  to  Dennis: 

"Lend  me  a  hand.    His  grip  may  give  out." 

But  it  did  not.  Dennis  gave  willing  help,  and 
•Tige,  with  his  claws  scratching  against  the  face  of 
the  rock,  was  speedily  hoisted  to  the  level  above,  where 
he  did  more  barking  in  response  to  noisy  congratula- 
tions and  much  patting. 

Suddenly  Dennis  Murphy  stopped  his  rejoicing, 
and  said  gravely : 

"Gintlemen,  jine  me." 

Remov-ing  his  cap,  he  looked  reverently  upward, 
and  in  a  few  simple  words  gave  thanks  to  God  for 
having  restored  the  boy  to  life  and  to  his  friends. 
The  miner  and  Tim  stood  with  bowed  heads,  the 
hearts  of  both  warm  with  gratitude;  after  such  a 
signal  display  of  goodness  by  Him  who  does  not  let 
a  sparrow  fall  to  the  ground  without  His  notice. 


88  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

"Well,"  said  Metcalf  a  minute  later,  "we  are  all 
well  tired  out  and  ready  to  go  into  camp ;  and  seeing 
that  this  isn't  the  best  place,  I  think  I  know  of 
another  that  will  suit.  There  we  will  stay  till  morn- 
ing, and  then  make  all  haste  to  San  Francisco,  for  I 
suspect  you  two  are  as  sick  of  this  country  as  I  am." 

"Gracious,  Mr.  Metcalf !"  exclaimed  Tim ;  "you 
don't  mean  to  wait  till  morning  before  we  have  some- 
thing to  eat  ?  I  can't  stand  it." 

"That  reminds  me  I'd  forgot  something,  as  me 
grandfather  remarked  when  he  landed  in  Ameriky 
and  found  he  had  left  his  wife  at  home.  I  didn't 
remimber,  me  boy,  to  provide  for  that  appetite  of 
yours." 

"But  I  remembered  it,"  was  the  pleasing  com- 
ment of  the  miner. 


CHAPTER  X 

AN    IMPORTANT    DISCOVERY 

You  will  remember  that  when  Dennis  Murphy  was 
in  despair,  one  of  the  two  Indians  whom  he  came  upon 
beckoned  him  away.  The  native  led  him  directly  to 
the  opening  in  the  ground  through  which  Tim 
Crowell  had  fallen  into  the  lost  river.  Dennis  did 
not  need  the  gestures  and  exclamations  of  the  dusky 
guide  to  make  clear  his  meaning;  but,  thanking  him 
as  best  he  could,  the  excited  Irishman  hurried  off  to 
hunt  up  Metcalf  the  miner.  It  was  some  time  before 
he  found  him,  and  when  he  did  so  he  had  shot  a 
mountain  sheep,  and  was  broiling  the  nourishing  food 
for  a  late  dinner.  Neither  of  the  two  paused  to  par- 
take, but  dashed  off  to  the  spot  where  the  boy  had 
disappeared. 

The  sight  which  met  them  explained  what  until 
then  had  been  a  problem  that  neither  could  solve. 
The  best  thing  about  it  all  was  the  declaration  of 
Metcalf  that  there  was  good  reason  to  think  the  boy 
was  safe.  He  believed  the  sunken  stream  emerged 
not  far  distant,  and  the  lad,  with  the  help  of  the  dog, 
had  probably  been  able  to  reach  shore.  \Yhat  the 
two  men  had  to  do  was  to  find  the  place  of  such 

89 


90  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

emergence,  and  you  may  be  sure  they  did  not  delay 
in  the  effort. 

The  only  way  to  trace  the  underground  stream 
was  by  keeping  within  hearing  of  the  current.  This 
compelled  them  to  advance  slowly,  and  to  pick  their 
course  with  great  care.  Despite  this,  they  got  off  the 
trail,  so  to  speak,  several  times,  and  had  to  assure 
themselves  when  they  were  right  by  kneeling  and 
pressing  their  ears  to  the  ground.  Thus  they  were 
employed  when  Dennis  was  thrilled  by  the  familiar 
signal  of  Tim.  Hardly  pausing  to  reply,  he  was  up 
and  away  as  fast  as  he  could  travel.  He  gave  no 
heed  to  his  friend,  who,  assured  that  all  was  right, 
turned  in  the  opposite  direction  and  hastened  to  the 
spot  where  he  had  prepared  the  meal  from  the  moun- 
tain sheep.  He  knew  that  if  there  ever  was  a  hungry 
boy,  Tim  Crowell  was  that  youngster. 

On  his  return  he  selected  a  spot  sheltered  by  a 
huge  pile  of  rocks,  hastily  gathered  some  branches 
and  bits  of  wood,  ready  for  firing,  and  then  joined  the 
Irishman,  who  was  trying  to  think  of  some  way  -of 
lifting  the  boy  and  the  dog  to  the  safe  upper  level. 
This  explains  how  the  miner  was  able  to  provide 
their  young  friend  with  the  meal  he  sorely  needed. 
They  did  not  have  to  walk  far  when  they  came  to  the 
place  which  had  been  selected  for  camp.  The 
blankets  were  untied  and  spread  on  the  ground. 
Tim's  garments  had  become  dry  long  before,  and  the 
little  party  enjoyed  the  happiest  meal  of  their  lives. 
By-and-by  Tim  and  Tige  lay  down  near  together  and 
fell  asleep;  while  the  men  lit  their  pipes  and  talked. 


AN  IMPORTANT  DISCOVERY.  g\ 

"How  we  missed  it,"  remarked  the  miner,  "in  sus- 
pecting the  Indians  or  that  white  party  of  having  had 
a  hand  in  the  misfortune  of  the  boy.  Not  only 
were  the  red  men  innocent,  but  they  were  ready  to 
give  you  all  the  help  they  could." 

"Yis,"  replied  Dennis;  "I  shall  niver  think  of  one 
of  them  ugly-looking  spalpeens  agin  without  wishing 
to  hug  him,  as  the  girls  used  to  remark  whin  they 
caught  sight  of  me." 

"I  am  glad  I  didn't  tell  that  churl  this  morning 
what  I  suspected,  for  I  did  him  a  cruel  wrong.  I 
think  there  is  a  lesson  in  what  happened  this  after- 
noon." 

"Which  the  same  might  be  what?" 

"That  there's  no  excuse  for  our  tarrying  longer  in 
the  Santa  Lucia  range.  The  few  bits  of  gold  we 
have  found  signify  nothing,  and  there  are  other  places 
where  we  have  much  better  cause  to  hunt  for  it. 
Then,  too,  if  anything  else  should  overtake  little  Tim, 
he  may  not  be  so  fortunate.  He  is  too  young  to  be 
our  companion." 

"It  was  a  mistake  that  he  ever  was;  if  Captain 
Belford  hadn't  been  in  such  a  hurry  to  lave  us  behind 
we  wouldnH  have  been  lift  behind,  as  me  second 
cousin  remarked  when  he  fell  out  of  the  waggon." 

"There  is  to  be  no  more  turning  aside  with  fool- 
ish hunts  for  gold.  I  am  as  eager  to  get  to  San 
Francisco  and  the  diggings  as  you,  and  it  shall  not 
be  my  fault  if  we  are  not  there  in  the  course  of  a  week 
or  so.  What  disturbs  you?" 

Dennis  Murphy  had  snatched  his  pipe  from  his 


92  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

mouth,  and  with  a  gasp  turned  his  eyes  towards  his 
companion  with  the  stare  of  a  wild  man. 

"Do  ye  mind?"  he  asked,  in  a  husky  voice. 

"Do  I  mind  what?"  asked  the  astonished  miner. 

"Have  ye  forgot  that  that  paper  in  your  pocket 
that  was  writ  by  the  crazy  man  told  ye  that  the 
stream  which  flowed  from  the  middle  mountain  peak 
flowed  underground?" 

"I  declare,"  replied  Metcalf,  "I  was  so  taken  up 
with  the  search  for  the  boy  that  I  forgot  everything 
else.  So  it  does  say,  and  we  have  reached  a  point 
pretty  well  north  of  where  we  camped  last  night  and 
this  morning.  There  may  be  something  in  this;  but, 
like  you,  I  had  made  up  my  mind  to  think  no  more 
about  it." 

"But  ye  were  not  like  me  if  ye  were  able  to  do 
that  same  thing;  ivery  once  in  a  while  the  feeling 
comes  over  me  that  instid  of  going  to  a  fortune  we're 
laving  it  behind  us,  and  that  we  shouldn't  be  in  too 
much  of  a  hurry  about  laving." 

"It  surprises  me  to  hear  you  speak  thus,  when 
you  seemed  to  have  little  or  no  faith  from  the  begin- 
ning." 

"It  surprises  mesilf,  as  Tim  Mooney  said  whin 
the  boss  told  him  he  had  worked  for  a  week  without 
being  docked  for  more  than  four  days;  but  I  can't 
help  the  feeling,  as  I  have  said.  I'll  agree  that  if 
there's  nothing  in  sight  to-morrow  that  looks  like  that 
picter  on  the  paper  ye  are  carrying,  I'll  never  spake 
of  the  subject  agin." 

Metcalf  drew  the  document  from  his  pocket,  and 


AN  IMPORTANT  DISCOVERY.  93 

the  two  once  more  scrutinised  it  by  the  light  of  the 
camp  fire.  It  was  wholly  useless  to  do  so;  for,  as  I 
have  said,  it  had  been  photographed  on  their  memory, 
but  the  two  studied  it  as  if  neither  had  ever  seen  it 
before. 

"We  mustn't  forget,"  said  the  miner,  as  he  re- 
folded the  paper  and  restored  it  to  his  pocket,  "that 
we  are  not  the  only  ones  in  this  section.  If  it  should 
prove  that  we  have  struck  the  right  section,  so  has 
someone  else." 

"I'm  thinking  that  if  they  have  larned  as  much 
as  we,  it  would  be  wise  to  offer  to  make  an  agreement 
with  them — a  sort  of  compromise,  so  to  spake." 

"What  offer  occurs  to  you?" 

"How  would  something  like  this  do :  If  they  first 
come  upon  the  goold,  they  are  to  divide  equally  with 
us ;  if  we  find  it  first,  we're  to  keep  it?" 

Nothing  could  be  better  for  us,  if  they  will  con- 
sent; but  suppose  they  should  make  the  same  pro- 
position to  us?" 

"As  to  which?" 

"That  we  should  give  them  half  of  what  we  find, 
and  they  give  us  none?" 

"I  should  rejict  such  an  insulting  proposition  with 
scorn." 

"Just  as  they  would  do  with  ours.  You  must  have 
learned  before  this,  Dennis,  that  most  men  are  selfish. 
We  must  make  our  hunt  alone  for  the  treasure ;  if  we 
succeed  in  finding  it  there  is  no  reason  why  we  should 
•divide  with  anyone  else.  Should  we  be  so  fortunate, 
we  share  and  share  alike — that  is,  each,  including  the 


94  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

lad,  is  to  have  a  third.  No  one  else  is  to  be  con- 
sidered." 

"Unless  the  same  pushes  in  onto  us,  as  the  dog 
obsarved  whin  the  trusting  boy  thrust  his  finger  into 
his  mouth  and  the  dog  bit  down  hard." 

Now  that  the  two  were  relieved  of  all  anxiety 
about  Tim,  they  talked  long  over  the  new,  or  rather 
old,  theme,  that  came  back  to  both  with  stronger  force 
than  before.  They  agreed  that  the  morrow  must 
settle  the  vexatious  question  once  and  for  all.  If  they 
failed  to  discover  the  three  mountain  peaks  as  marked 
on  the  paper,  with  the  winding  stream  at  the  base, 
they  would  give  the  matter  no  more  thought.  Though 
neither  would  confess  it,  each  was  hopeful  that  they 
were  on  the  eve  of  the  most  important  discovery 
of  their  lives.  It  was  late  when  they  stretched  out  on 
the  single  blanket,  leaving  the  duty  of  sentinel  to 
Tige,  as  before. 

Dennis  Murphy  slept  longer  than  he  expected,  but 
not  so  long  as  Tim  Crowell,  who  was  worn  out  by  his 
exhausting  experience  of  the  previous  day.  When 
the  Irishman  opened  his  eyes  and  looked  about  him, 
it  was  several  minutes  before  he  could  gather  his 
senses.  He  turned  to  speak  to  the  miner,  but  he  was 
absent. 

"I  hope  he  hasn't  tumbled  into  the  lost  river,"  mut- 
tered Dennis,  "for  I'm  getting  tired  of  pulling  people 
out,  as  me  mither  said  after  I  had  fell  in  the  water 
cistern  three  times " 

At  that  moment  he  heard  a  faint  "Halloo!" 
Looking  towards  the  spot  whence  the  hail  came,  he 


AN  IMPORTANT  DISCOVERY.  95 

saw  Metcalf  standing  on  the  summit  of  a  ridge  a 
furlong  away,  and  beckoning  to  him.  He  was  swing- 
ing his  hat  above  his  head  with  every  appearance  of 
excitement.  Wondering  what  it  could  mean,  Dennis 
climbed  to  his  feet,  caught  up  his  rifle,  and  hastened 
towards  him.  He  saw  that  Tige  was  awake,  but  the 
man  did  not  think  it  worth  while  to  rouse  Tim,  who 
was  still  sleeping  at  his  side. 

Not  until  Dennis  had  passed  half  the  distance  did 
he  recall  the  conversation  of  the  night  before.  Surely 
the  agitation  of  his  friend  must  have  some  thing  to  do 
with  that,  and  he  hastened  his  footsteps,  falling  sev- 
eral times ;  but  he  soon  clambered  up  beside  his  com- 
rade, who  was  impatiently  awaiting  him. 

Had  the  Irishman  borne  the  miner  company  to 
the  ridge,  he  would  have  suspected  that  he  was  in 
the  presence  of  a  crazy  man;  but  the  interval  had 
been  long  enough  for  Metcalf  to  pull  himself  to- 
gether, though  he  was  still  trembling  and  his  face 
pale. 

"What  is  it  that  disturbs  ye?"  asked  Dennis.  "Ye 
didn't  slape  as  well  as  mesilf,  because  your  conscience 
troubles  ye " 

"Cease  your  nonsense,"  interrupted  the  other 
curtly.  "Look  off  yonder!" 

He  pointed  eastward  as  he  spoke,  and  the  Irish- 
man saw,  a  half-mile  distant,  three  mountain  peaks, 
exactly  as  they  were  represented  on  the  paper  which 
had  been  given  to  the  miner  weeks  before  by  James 
jCovington,  in  the  diggings  to  the  north. 

"I  b'lave  they're  the  same,"  remarked  Dennis. 


96  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

"And  now  look  at  the  base  of  the  middle  peak, 
a  short  distance  in  front,  and  tell  me  what  you  see 
there!" 

Dennis  looked,  and  saw  that  which  had  baffled 
them  so  long  that  they  had  given  up  hope  of  ever 
seeing  it — a  winding  stream  in  the  shape  of  the  letter 
S,  which,  after  flowing  a  short  distance,  sank  out  of 
sight  into  the  earth.  The  man  stared,  and  for  a 
moment  held  his  breath.  Then  he  emitted  a  whoop, 
and  flung  his  hat  a  dozen  feet  above  his  head. 

"It's  the  same !  it's  the  same !"  he  shouted,  act- 
ing as  if  bereft  of  his  senses.  The  miner  observed 
him  and  smiled.  He  had  done  the  same  thing,  and 
was  yet  hardly  master  of  himself. 

There  could  be  no  mistake.  The  artist,  in  making 
his  sketch,  had  added  glimpses  of  the  scenery  to  the 
right,  the  left,  and  in  the  valley  in  front,  one  of  which 
was  a  couple  of  withered  pines,  part  way  down  the 
slope.  In  fact,  he  had  reproduced  the  principal  points 
in  the  field  of  vision  with  the  fidelity  of  a  photograph. 

The  miner  had  his  paper  in  hand,  and  stepping 
beside  his  comrade  when  his  excitement  had  cooled 
down,  directed  attention  to  the  smaller  points,  of 
which  they  had  not  thought  until  then. 

"Yes,"  he  said,  refolding  the  paper  and  putting 
it  away;  "when  we  least  expected  it,  we  have  found 
the  spot.  We  were  near  it  all  day  yesterday,  but 
even  after  Tim  had  fallen  into  the  lost  river,  we  did 
not  dream  of  it." 

"And  was  it  that  stream  that  he  dropped  into  ?" 

"No,  but  a  tributary  of  it.    The  two  unite  some- 


AN  IMPORTANT  DISCOVERY.  97 

where,  and  then  come  to  the  surface  close  to  the  spot 
where  we  came  upon  him." 

"But  where  is  the  pile  of  rocks  that  the  man  wrote 
about,  and  where  he  said  we  should  find  several  hun- 
dred thousand  millions  in  goold?" 

"He  did  not  mention  the  word  'gold,'  but  that  is 
what  he  meant.  The  rocks  in  which  he  located  the 
treasure  is  just  beyond  where  Tim  is  lying  this  min- 
ute ;  when  we  were  making  our  way  to  camp  last  night 
we  passed  within  a  few  yards  of  the  spot.  Yonder 
it  is,  in  plain  sight." 


CHAPTER  XI 

TWO  NATIVE  EXPLORERS 

NOTHING  was  lacking.  Every  detail  of  the  drawing 
of  the  artist  was  before  them,  and  the  pile  of  rocks, 
said  to  contain  the  treasure,  was  clearly  seen.  Down 
the  slope  young  Tim  Crowell,  who  was  seen  to  be 
moving  about  with  his  dog  Tige,  was  within  a  hun- 
dred yards  of  the  very  spot.  Whether  the  secret  of 
the  dead  Covington  was  really  a  secret  must  soon  be 
known. 

Metcalf  and  Dennis  had  become  more  calm, 
though  both  were  in  a  state  of  restrained  excitement 
over  the  certainty  that  a  great  revelation  or  a  bitter 
disappointment  was  at  hand.  At  such  times  a  person 
grows  nervous  and  afraid  that  others  may  rob  him  of 
that  which  he  looks  upon  as  his  own.  When  the 
Irishman  proposed  that  they  should  go  down  the 
ridge  and  investigate  without  any  more  delay,  the 
miner  shook  his  head. 

"We  must  not  forget  that  others  are  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood. Perhaps  their  eyes  are  upon  us  this  minute, 
and  we  cannot  make  a  move  without  its  being  seen 
and  understood  by  them." 

"And  what  if  they  do  the  same?"  demanded  the 
combative  Celt.  "If  we're  ahead  of  the  spalpeens, 

98 


TWO  NATIVE  EXPLORERS.  99 

why  we'll  be  ahead  of  thim;  and  if  they  seek  to 
interfere  we'll  fight." 

"\Ye  risk  too  much  by  such  rashness.  I  have  met 
only  one  of  the  white  men,  but  perhaps  there  are  a 
dozen  lurking  near.  They  may  not  know  as  much 
about  this  as  we  do,  and  are  waiting  for  us  to  give 
them  the  tip." 

"And  they'll  get  the  same  tip,  if  they  seek  to 
bother  us,  as  used  to  be  the  case  whin  my  frinds  got 
in  the  way  of  me  shillelagh." 

After  a  time  the  miner  succeeded  in  soothing  his 
companion  and  convincing  him  that  it  was  the  time 
for  extreme  caution.  Inasmuch  as  the  hidden 
treasure  had  waited  so  long,  it  could  wait  a  little 
longer,  and  the  two  would  not  explore  the  rocks  until 
certain  that  no  one  else  was  watching  them. 

"Yonder,  near  the  base  of  that  middle  peak,  just 
above  the  crooked  stream,  is  something  which,  per- 
haps, will  interest  you." 

Looking  in  the  direction  named,  a  wavy  line  of 
light-coloured  smoke  was  seen  issuing  from  and 
lingering  above  a  clump  of  pine.  It  was  not  dense, 
but  was  seen  too  distinctly  to  be  mistaken.  Clearly 
a  camp  fire  was  among  those  trees. 

"Suppose  a  party  of  gold  hunters  are  there,  as  I 
believe  is  a  fact,  we  are  in  plain  sight  of  them. 
Therefore  we  must  keep  away  from  the  rocks  till  we 
learn  something  about  the  strangers.  I  will  take  it 
upon  myself  to  do  that." 

"And  while  ye  are  doing  the  same,  how  shall 
Dennis  Murphy  employ  his  elegant  leisure?" 


ioo  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

"Rejoin  Tim  in  our  camp.  There  is  enough  of 
the  mountain  sheep  left  to  make  you  a  good  meal. 
Wait  there  for  me." 

It  was  not  the  most  pleasant  proposal  in  the 
world;  but  the  good  sense  of  the  Irishman  told  him 
it  was  wise.  He  agreed  to  it ;  while  the  miner  passed 
with  him  down  the  ridge  until  it  shut  him  from  view 
when  he  turned  to  make  his  attempt  to  reach  the 
other  camp  without  being  discovered  by  those  whose 
presence  just  then  was  so  unwelcome.  Dennis  urged 
him  to  join  them  in  the  morning  meal,  but  he  replied: 

"I  am  too  excited  to  feel  any  appetite.  I  shall 
care  for  no  food  until  I  know  more  about  this  matter 
than  I  do  now."  With  these  words  the  friends  parted, 
and,  following  the  devious  course,  Metcalf  soon  dis- 
appeared, leaving  Dennis  and  Tim  to  pass  the  time 
as  best  they  could  while  he  was  away.  Although 
no  promise  had  been  given  or  asked,  the  miner  took 
it  for  granted  that  his  wishes  would  be  respected  by 
the  Irishman. 

Metcalf  was  very  cautions.  Where  there  was  so 
much  at  stake,  he  meant  to  run  no  unnecessary  risks, 
and  in  order  to  make  sure  he  Was  not  observed  by 
those  whom  he  was  reconnoitring,  he  made  a  wide 
detour  to  the  right,  returning  to  the  spot  near  the 
base  of  the  middle  peak,  where  his  movements  were 
as  guarded  as  those  of  a  red  Indian  entering  the 
camp  of  an  enemy.  He  had  used  fully  two  hours, 
and  the  sun  was  well  up  in  the  sky. 

The  nature  of  the  ground  favoured  him,  and,  still 
careful  and  deliberate,  he  was  sure  he  had  not  been 


TWO  NATIVE  EXPLORERS.  101 

noticed.  His  aim  was  to  approach  nigh  enough,  not 
only  to  see  the  whites,  but  to  overhear  some  of  their 
conversation  without  betraying  himself.  He  believed 
that  in  this  way  he  would  learn  what  he  was  so 
anxious  to  know,  after  which  he  must  be  guided  by 
his  best  judgment.  Whether,  too,  he  should  go  for- 
ward and  make  himself  known  could  not  be  settled 
until  he  learned  more. 

From  the  first  Metcalf  had  acted  upon  the  theory 
that  the  men  in  the  camp  were  of  his  own  race,  but 
a  surprise  awaited  him;  for  when  he  caught  his  first 
stolen  glimpse  of  the  campers  he  discovered  they 
were  the  two  Indians  whom  Dennis  had  met  the  day 
before,  and  one  of  whom  had  given  him  the  clue  to 
the  disappearance  of  Tim  Crowell. 

The  miner  was  so  astonished  that  he  rose  from 
his  crouching  posture,  called  out  "How!"  and  walked 
forward  to  meet  the  couple,  who  were  plainly  sur- 
prised to  see  him  there. 

These  repellent-looking  savages  evidently  had 
slept  on  the  spot,  and  not  long  before  had  eaten  their 
morning  meal.  The  smell  of  cooking  food  lingered 
in  the  air  and  mingled  with  the  odour  of  the  rank 
tobacco  which  they  were  smoking  in  their  long- 
stemmed  pipes  while  they  lolled  on  the  ground. 
Rather  curiously,  their  meat  was  of  the  same  kind  as 
that  partaken  of  by  the  miner  the  night  before,  being 
mountain  sheep,  of  which  there  was  enough  left  to 
afford  another  meal.  The  visitor  noticed  several 
bones  with  the  meat  attached  lying  on  the  ground 
behind  them. 


102  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

The  natives  replied  to  the  greeting  with  an  ex- 
clamation of  their  own,  which,  however,  bore  no  re- 
semblance to  the  "How!"  of  the  white  man.  They 
had  laid  aside  their  bows  and  arrows,  the  two  long 
weapons  leaning  against  the  nearest  boulder.  They 
made  no  move  to  recover  them,  and  it  is  probable 
that  the  sign  of  good-will  which  Metcalf  made  as  he 
came  forward  was  understood  by  them.  They  did 
not  rise  to  their  feet,  but  the  action  of  one  in  shifting 
his  seat  further  from  his  companion  and  his  pointing 
to  the  vacated  spot  was  so  clearly  an  invitation  that 
the  white  man  accepted  it,  and  sat  down  between  the 
two. 

Then  the  second  rose,  walked  to  where  the  half- 
cooked  mutton  was  lying,  and  brought  back  a  big 
bone  to  the  visitor.  Nodding  his  head  by  way  of 
thanks,  the  miner  accepted  it,  and  ate  so  vigorously 
that  the  host,  with  a  queer  grin  on  his  ugly  face, 
brought  him  a  second  bone.  Metcalf  disposed  of 
nearly  all  the  meat  it  contained,  but  left  so  much  un- 
tasted  that  he  was  invited  to  take  no  more,  and  was 
permitted  to  fling  away  what  remained. 

Then  the  Indian  on  his  left  took  his  pipe  from 
his  mouth,  and  with  a  grunt  offered  it  to  the  caller. 
Metcalf  detested  the  coarse,  rank  tobacco;  but  he 
would  have  submitted  to  a  good  deal  more  rather 
than  offend  his  dusky  friends.  He  took  a  number  of 
whiffs,  with  every  appearance  of  enjoyment,,  though 
the  weed  was  very  distasteful.  Thus  the  best  of 
relations  were  established  between  the  parties.  Each 
trusted  the  other,  and  neither  was  in  danger. 


TWO  NATIVE  EXPLORERS.  103 

Now,  who  were  these  red  men?  Of  one  fact  the 
miner  was  certain:  they  did  not  belong  to  that  part 
of  California,  but  had  come  from  a  long  distance,  and 
were  now  returning  at  a  leisurely  rate  to  their  homes. 
This  raised  other  interesting  questions,  as  to  where 
they  had  come  from  and  why  they  had  made  a  visit 
to  the  Santa  Lucia  range.  You  will  be  surprised 
when  I  tell  you  something  which  you  probably  never 
suspected,  but  which  is  true.  It  had  been  proved  that 
from  the  first  settlement  of  America  there  have  been 
what  may  be  called  explorers  among  the  Indians. 
Certain  members  of  tribes  journeyed  hundreds  of 
miles  away  from  home,  led  by  the  same  motive  which 
leads  men  to  try  to  find  the  North  Pole  or  to  plunge 
into  the  heart  of  Africa.  They  yielded  to  the  long- 
ing to  learn  more  of  the  world  than  they  ever  could 
learn  by  staying  at  home  with  their  own  tribe.  While 
Captain  John  Smith,  the  "Father  of  Virginia,"  was 
ascending  one  of  the  streams  of  that  colony  in  a 
small  boat,  he  met  a  large  canoe,  in  which  were  seated 
a  dozen  warriors,  who  were  members  of  the  Iroquois, 
or  Six  Nations,  whose  home  was  in  Central  New 
York,  nearly  a  thousand  miles  distant.  This  party 
had  come  all  the  way  to  Virginia  to  see  the  country 
and  people,  and  probably  to  form  plans  for  the  con- 
quest of  the  different  tribes;  for,  as  you  know,  the 
Iroquois  were  great  fighters,  and  it  is  believed  that 
but  for  the  arrival  of  the  English  settlers  they  would 
have  brought  all  the  Indians  along  the  Atlantic  under 
their  sway. 

A  party  of  hunters  half  a  century  ago  met  three 


104  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

Indians  near  the  border  line  of  Canada  whom  they 
recognised  as  members  of  a  tribe  living  in  Texas, 
much  farther  from  their  home  than  were  the  Iroquois. 
One  of  the  white  hunters  was  able  to  speak  the 
jComanche  tongue,  and  learned  from  the  three  that 
they  were  simply  making  a  tour  of  the  country,  and 
would  have  gone  still  farther  north  had  not  the  climate 
become  unpleasantly  severe.  If  you  have  felt  enough 
interest  in  "Deerfoot  the  Shawanoe"  to  read  what  I 
have  told  about  him,  you  will  remember  that  he 
sometimes  gave  way  to  that  longing  for  travel  which 
comes  over  persons  now  and  then,  and  which  most 
boys  feel  about  all  the  time. 

Had  Metcalf  been  able  to  converse  with  the  two. 
red  men  who  were  entertaining  him  so  hospitably, 
he  would  have  heard  an  interesting  story;  but  that 
was  impossible,  though  he  had  decided  from  the  first 
that  the  couple  were  a  long  way  from  their  home,  to 
which  they  were  now  returning.  In  fact,  he  re- 
membered an  affray  with  the  Indians  in  the  Sierras, 
in  which  he  and  a  number  of  miners  were  engaged, 
with  losses  on  both  sides.  The  warriors,  who  fought 
fiercely  with  their  bows  and  arrows,  were  the  counter- 
parts of  the  two  before  him,  and  he  was  almost  certain 
they  belonged  to  the  same  tribe.  If  they  had  come 
to  this  part  of  California  for  any  other  reason  than 
to  gratify  their  curiosity,  it  was  impossible  to  guess 
that  reason:  and  we  must  confess,  after  all,  that  it 
was  nobody's  business  but  their  own. 

Much  as  the  miner  was  interested  in  his  dusky 
friends,  he  was  not  in  the  mood  to  remain  long  in  their 


TWO  NATIVE  EXPLORERS.  105 

company.  It  was  a  great  relief  to  find  his  mistake ; 
but  his  fears  of  the  white  men  were  not  removed,  for 
it  seemed  to  him  that  if  they  were  lingering  in  the 
vicinity  for  some  sinister  purpose,  they  would  take 
good  care  not  to  betray  themselves  by  means  of  a 
camp  fire.  They  could  hover  near  the  mass  of  rocks, 
and  still  keep  out  of  sight  all  the  time. 

Having  finished  smoking  the  "pipe  of  peace," 
Metcalf  rose  to  his  feet  after  returning  it,  bowed  low, 
and  said  "Thank  you,"  to  which  they  also  nodded 
their  heads  and  grunted  their  goodwill.  As  he  was 
moving  away,  he  was  astonished  by  the  action  of  one, 
who  drew  a  half-dozen  lucifer  matches  from  the  sash 
around  his  waist  and  handed  them  to  him.  It  was  an 
expression  of  friendship  which  was  appreciated,  and 
it  also  proved  that  these  natives  had  somewhere  come 
in  contact  with  white  men  from  whom  they  must  have 
obtained  the  bits  of  pine  and  sulphur;  for,  as  you 
know,  the  aboriginal  way  of  starting  a  fire  is  by  the 
friction  of  pieces  of  dry  wood  together. 

"I  only  wish  I  could  feel  as  well  satisfied  about 
those  of  my  own  race,"  mused  Metcalf,  who,  instead 
of  taking  his  roundabout  course  back  to  camp,  fol- 
lowed a  direct  line  across  the  valley-like  depression 
toward  the  ridge.  Before  reaching  the  elevation,  how- 
ever, he  made  another  detour,  moving  in  so  long 
a  circle  that  a  greater  delay  than  before  followed. 
He  could  not  rid  himself  of  the  fear  of  interference 
from  the  strangers,  who  were  at  no  great  distance, 
and  he  hoped  to  gain  some  knowledge  of  them.  He 
believed  the  only  prudent  course  was  for  him  and  his 


106  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

friends  to  keep  away  from  the  rocks  until  dusk,  when 
the  search  could  be  made  with  safety. 

Often  he  scanned  every  point  in  his  field  of  vision 
in  quest  of  the  tell-tale  smoke,  but  nothing  of  it  was 
detected.  That  which  climbed  into  the  sky  from  the 
fire  kindled  by  the  two  Indians  gradually  faded  from 
view,  and  the  clear  air  was  unstained  and  transparent, 
as  it  was  likely  to  be  for  months  to  come. 

Thus  it  was  that  the  day  was  half  gone  when  he 
finally  gave  over  his  reconnoitring  and  headed  directly 
for  the  camp  where  he  had  left  his  friends  hours 
before  and  where  he  found  them  impatiently  await- 
ing his  return. 


CHAPTER  XII 

THE  GOLDEN  CAVE 

You  will  agree  with  me  that  one  of  the  hardest  things 
to  do  is  to  wait.  The  poet  tells  us  that  we  must 
learn  to  labour  and  to  wait,  which  is  not  so  hard ;  but 
it  is  the  waiting  in  idleness,  especially  when  we  can 
see  no  reason  for  the  delay.  Dennis  Murphy  felt 
that  he  ought  to  follow  the  wishes  of  the  miner,  not 
only  because  of  his  greater  experience  in  this  part  of 
the  world,  but  because  he  was  the  real  owner  of  the 
important  secret.  So,  when  the  Irishman  rejoined 
Tim,  and  they  two  ate  their  breakfast,  he  expected  to 
stay  where  they  were  until  Metcalf  showed  up.  This 
was  not  difficult  for  an  hour  or  so,  but  after  that  he 
began  to  chafe  and  fret.  He  walked  to  and  fro,  sat 
down,  nervously  smoked  his  pipe,  scanned  the  sur- 
sounding  country,  and  fixed  his  gaze  on  the  mass  of 
rocks  which  he  had  come  firmly  to  believe  contained 
a  fortune  for  them  all. 

He  had  told  his  young  friend  the  whole  truth,  and 
Tim  did  not  add  to  his  mental  quiet  when  he  declared 
it  was  foolish  to  remain  idle  so  long. 

"We  have  been  looking  for  this  place  for  more 
than  a  week,  and  now,  when  we  have  found  it,  we 

107 


io8  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

must  sit  down  and  do  something  but  stare  at  it.  What 
good  can  that  do?" 

"It's  to  be  only  till  Mr.  Metcalf  comes  back." 

"But  why  wait  for  him  ?  I'm  sure  we  have  nothing 
to  fear  from  anybody  else." 

"I  think  the  same;  but  I  don't  like  to  offind  the 
gintleman,  as  I'm  afeard  of  doing  if  we  don't  tarry  till 
he  comes." 

"Why  not  let  me  go  down  and  look  at  the  rocks 
while  you  stay  here?" 

D'ennis  had  thought  of  the  same  thing,  but  was 
in  doubt  as  to  its  propriety.  It  seemed  like  dodging 
the  question.  So  he  waited  another  hour,  by  which 
time  his  impatience  was  almost  anger. 

"It's  nothing  but  fooling,  as  the  boys  used  to  find 
out  when  they  tried  to  interfere  wid  anything  I  had 
in  mind.  We'll  do  this,  Tim:  I'll  stay  here  while  ye 
and  Tige  saunter  down  to  them  rocks  sort  of  care- 
less like,  as  if  ye  are  thinking  of  nothing  partic'lar, 
and  whin  ye  get  near  the  spot  insthruct  Tige  to  go 
inside,  look  around,  and  then  come  back  and  whisper 
to  ye  what  he  has  obsarved.  He  mustn't  spake  too 
loud  for  fear  someone  might  overhear  what  is  said." 

The  plan  suited  Tim,  who,  calling  in  Tige,  some 
distance  away,  set  out  for  the  mass  of  rocks,  which, 
it  will  be  remembered,  had  been  made  as  familiar  in 
appearance  to  him,  by  means  of  the  drawings,  as  to 
the  men.  He  knew  where  to  look  for  the  fissure, 
which  was  on  one  side  to  the  right,  and  not  visible 
until  he  had  turned  and  walked  a  little  way,  as  if  he 
meant  to  pass  around  the  pile  of  stone.  At  the  very 


THE  GOLDEN  CAVE.  109 

point  expected  he  found  it.  The  opening  looked  as 
if  it  had  been  made  by  a  splitting  apart  of  the  enor- 
mous mass,  for  it  extended  from  top  to  bottom,  and 
was  three  or  four  feet  wide.  That  such  was  its  origin 
was  shown  by  the  appearance  of  the  sides,  whose  pro- 
jections and  indentations  corresponded  so  well  that 
had  the  two  walls  been  pressed  together  again  these 
irregularities  would  have  fitted  perfectly  into  one 
another. 

Knowing  the  cause  of  the  misgiving  which  held 
back  the  miner,  Tim  Crowell  now  hesitated  to  go 
farther.  Suppose  enemies  were  lurking  near  at  hand 
on  the  watch,  would  not  his  action  betray  the  secret 
to  them,  and  would  they  not  rush  forward  and  rob 
them  of  the  treasure?  He  and  his  friends  had  now 
only  two  guns  among  them,  and  one  was  absent. 
What  could  Dennis  Murphy  do  unaided  to  keep  off 
the  rush  of  half  a  dozen  persons  bent  on  securing 
the  gold  ?  He  saw  the  need  of  the  utmost  precaution. 
Halting,  therefore,  some  distance  away,  he  turned  and 
looked  around  him.  The  field  of  rock,  boulder,  moun- 
tain, valley,  and  pine  was  extensive,  and  it  took  no 
little  time  to  complete  the  survey.  All  the  sign  of  life 
he  could  observe  was  the  figure  of  Dennis  standing 
on  the  elevation  to  the  eastward,  his  gun  in  one  hand, 
the  other  hanging  at  his  side,  with  volumes  of  smoke 
curling  over  his  head  from  the  pipe  which  he  was 
nervously  smoking.  The  Celt  noted  his  action,  but 
continued  looking  steadily  at  him  without  making  any 
movement  or  speaking. 

"Tige,"  said  Tim,  pointing  to  the  opening,  "go  in 


i  io  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

there,  and  if  you  are  able  to  find  any  gold  bring  it 
out  to  me." 

Dennis  could  not  have  understood  more  clearly 
what  was  said.  The  dog,  without  hesitation,  walked 
slowly  towards  the  fissure,  paused  a  moment,  and  then, 
moving  still  more  slowly,  passed  from  sight.  A 
minute  or  two  later  he  barked  sharply,  as  if  calling 
to  his  master  to  follow  him.  While  asking  himself 
whether  he  should  heed  the  call,  Tige  burst  into  view 
and  galloped  up  to  Tim,  who  saw  that  he  was  carry- 
ing something  in  his  mouth.  In  front  of  the  boy  he 
lowered  his  head,  and  dropped  a  golden  nugget  at 
his  feet.  It  was  as  large  as  a  small  walnut,  and  Tim's 
heart  gave  a  quick  throb  as  he  stooped  and  picked 
it  up. 

"It's  gold  sure,  and  bigger  than  anything  we  have 
found!"  exclaimed  the  lad.  "Back  with  you,  Tige, 
and  bring  me  more  if  there's  any  left  to  bring." 

Tige  was  off  like  a  shot,  and  again  his  barking 
was  heard  from  somewhere  in  the  interior  of  the 
mass  of  stone.  Tim  held  his  ground,  and  in  no  little 
excitement  waited  for  the  animal  to  reappear.  But 
the  minutes  passed,  and  he  did  not  come,  though 
his  barking  continued.  Evidently  the  dog  was  de- 
termined to  stay  where  he  was  until  the  rule  was 
reversed  and  his  master  obeyed  him. 

Tim  stood  in  doubt  what  he  ought  to  do.  Dennis, 
who  was  closely  watching  the  proceedings,  and  who, 
in  the  general  stillness,  caught  the  muffled  sound  of 
the  dog's  signals,  called  out: 

"In  with  ye !  Ye've  gone  too  far  to  back  out !" 


THE  GOLDEN  CAVE.  in 

Tim  went  forward  with  strange  feelings.  Step- 
ping into  the  fissure,  he  extended  his  arms  so  as  to 
touch  the  flinty  walls  on  each  side,  and  carefully  took 
his  steps,  feeling  his  way,  as  may  be  said.  The  open- 
ing wound  about,  so  that  at  no  part  could  he  see  more 
than  two  or  three  steps  in  front.  The  barking  did 
not  stop,  and  he  was  steadily  drawing  nearer  the  dog. 

"Hush,  Tige!  I'm  coming!"  called  Tim  in  a  sup- 
pressed voice.  The  canine  not  only  ceased  barking 
but  came  galloping  back.  The  moment  he  caught 
sight  of  his  master  he  whirled  about  and  dashed  out 
of  sight  again.  Just  then  lie  was  the  most  excited 
member  of  the  little  party. 

Ten  feet  farther  the  fissure's  width  expanded 
threefold,  disclosing  a  rough,  irregular  circle,  suggest- 
ing a  bay  window,  which  reached  from  the  ground  to 
the  sunlight,  fifty  feet  above.  Beyond  was  solid  wall. 
It  was  as  if  a  boring  had  been  made,  with  the  fissure 
as  an  outlet,  only  the  bore  was  too  rough  to  have 
been  sunk  by  the  hand  of  man. 

The  floor  of  this  opening  was  covered  with  gold. 

There  seemed  hardly  an  inch  of  the  space,  which 
was  something  like  a  dozen  feet  each  way,  that  did 
not  contain  one  or  more  of  the  glittering  yellow  nug- 
gets. Not  only  that,  but  they  were  tumbled  and  piled 
over  one  another,  in  some  places  two  or  three  deep. 
These  specimens  of  pure  auriferous  metal  varied  in 
size  from  a  marble  to  a  small  hen's  egg,  and  must 
have  been  worth  many  thousands  of  pounds. 

No  wonder  Tim  Crowell  stood  for  a  minute  trans- 
fixed and  speechless.  He  had  expected  to  find  some- 


112  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

thing,  but  never  thought  of  anything  like  this.     He 
wondered  whether  he  was  asleep  or  awake. 

After  pinching  himself  he  was  still  dazed  and  un- 
certain whether  the  whole  thing  was  not  some  wild 
freak  of  the  senses.  Tige  stood  staring  at  the  feast 
of  richness,  and  then  looked  up  at  his  master,  as  if 
asking  him  what  he  thought  of  it  all.  Not  until  Tim 
had  stooped  and  lifted  some  of  the  heavy  nuggets, 
and  closed  his  palm  about  them,  and  bitten  them  and 
turned  them  over,  and  inspected  others,  did  he  feel 
really  sure  that  what  he  was  looking  upon  was  real. 

"Wurra,  wurra,  did  ye  iver  drame  of  anything  of 
the  like." 

The  question  was  asked  by  Dennis  Murphy  in  a 
husky  whisper.  Yielding  to  his  impatience,  he  had 
rushed  down  from  camp  and  hurried  into  the  fissure 
after  his  young  friend,  who  was  too  rapt  in  what  he 
saw  to  hear  his  footsteps. 

Tim  turned  his  head,  and  saw  the  Irishman,  with 
pale  face,  leaning  against  the  side  of  the  fissure, 
almost  too  weak  to  stand.  He  was  so  overcome, 
indeed,  that  for  several  minutes  he  did  not  speak,  but 
stared  and  breathed  fast  and  hard.  Tim,  although 
amazed  beyond  expression,  was  not  so  deeply  affected. 
He  picked  up  a  nugget,  and  after  a  hasty  examination 
threw  it  down  again.  He  stepped  among  them,  and 
once  partly  fell  because  of  their  turning  under  his 
shoes.  He  kicked  them  about,  and  then  tried  to  gather 
so  many  that  they  fell  from  his  grasp  and  rolled  to 
the  rocky  floor. 

"Tim,"  said  his  friend,  when  he  had  rallied,  "do 


THE  GOLDEN  CAVE.  113 

ye  know  what  I'm  going  to  do  with  me  share  of 
that?" 

"How  can  I  know  when  you  haven't  told  me?" 

"I'm  going  to  buy  Ireland.  Iverything,  ye  know, 
has  its  price ;  and  the  British  Government  won't  be 
able  to  say  'No'  whin  they  larn  what  sum  I  offer." 

"What  else  will  you  do?"  asked  Tim,  entering  into 
the  humour  of  the  situation. 

"I'll  buy  the  city  of  New  York  as  a  prisent  to  yer- 
silf ;  then  I'll  buy  me  sweetheart  Mary  a  pair  of  ear- 
rings as  big  as  barrel  hoops ;  I'll  give  me  mither — 
God  bless  her! — a  snuff-box  like  the  wash-tub  in 
which  she  used  to  souse  me  wid  the  clothes;  and  I'll 
have  a  watch  chain  for  mesilf  of  the  same  size  as  that 
coil  of  anchor  chain  we  obsarved  on  the  Golden  Gate, 
wid  a  charm  of  the  same  proportions  as  the  anchor  it- 
self ;  and  I  shall  wear  boots  of  solid  gold,  with  the  legs 
reaching  to  me  ears  and  rubbing  agin  them  as  I  walk ; 
then  I'll — but  I'm  thinking  that  will  do  for  the  prisent. 
What  have  ye  a  mind  to  do  with  your  part;  for, 
ye  know,  Mr.  Metcalf  said  we  was  to  share  and 
share  alike?" 

"I'm  afraid  that  by  the  time  you  are  through  there 
won't  be  anything  left  for  me  to  do." 

From  this  marvellous  floor  the  fissure  sloped  grad- 
ually, so  that  it  was  always  dry.  During  the  wet 
season  a  good  deal  of  water  must  have  found  its  way 
into  the  golden  cave,  but  quickly  flowed  out  again. 
The  fact  that  none  of  the  nuggets  was  found  outside 
of  the  circular  space,  and  in  the  crevice  or  chasm,  was 
due  to  the  great  specific  gravity  of  the  metal.  It  is 


114  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

this  extraordinary  weight  which  makes  the  washing  of 
gold  so  easy.  Into  an  inclined  wooden  rocker  the  pay 
dirt  is  flung,  and  quickly  carried  off  by  the  powerful 
current  that  rushes  through ;  but  the  particles  of  gold 
instantly  sink  to  the  bottom,  and  remain  to  be  taken 
out  after  everything  else  has  been  swept  away. 

This  enormous  wealth  must  have  been  brought  to 
'the  place,  for  the  rocks  were  not  of  the  kind  among 
which  it  is  found  in  its  native  state.  However,  neither 
Dennis  nor  Tim  was  in  the  mood  to  speculate  as  to  the 
means  by  which  the  treasure  reached  this  recess 
among  the  rocks.  It  was  enough  to  know  that  it 
was  there,  and  the  Irishman  was  resolved  that  no 
one  beside  himself  and  his  two  friends  should  share  it. 

"What  will  Mr.  Metcalf  say  when  he  obsarves  the 
same?"  he  asked  of  his  young  friend  some  minutes 
later. 

"We  shall  have  to  wait  and  see.  Let's  go  outside 
till  he  comes." 

They  made  their  way  back  to  camp,  nervous,  dis- 
turbed, fearful,  hopeful,  and  in  a  fever  of  delight  over 
the  discovery,  which  at  times  still  seemed  unreal  to 
both.  At  last,  after  long,  tedious  waiting,  the  miner 
joined  them. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

A  SERIOUS  PROBLEM 

METCALF  the  miner  knew  before  a  word  was  spoken 
by  either  of  his  friends  that  they  had  solved  the 
secret  of  the  golden  cave. 

"Did  you  find  it?" 

"We  did,  as  me  cousin  remarked  whin  he  run  his 
head  into  a  hornets'  nest,"  replied  Dennis;  "there's 
enough  goold  among  them  rocks  to  buy  out  the  United 
States  of  Ameriky,  with  the  British  Islands  throwed 
in  to  make  good  weight." 

These  astonishing  words  drove  every  thought  from 
the  mind  of  the  other,  who  said: 

"I  must  see  for  myself." 

He  broke  into  a  loping  trot  down  the  declivity, 
Dennis  at  his  heels  and  Tim  and  Tige  following  close 
behind  him.  There  was  no  thought  now  of  the 
strangers  who  were  supposed  to  be  in  the  vicinity. 
No  one  spoke  a  word  until  all  stood  before  the  array 
of  wealth,  which  would  have  delighted  the  heart  of  a 
millionaire.  The  miner  had  been  under  such  a  strain 
since  the  night  before  that  he  was  able  to  hold  him- 
self in  hand  better  than  would  have  been  expected. 
He  stood  for  several  minutes  looking  down  at  the 

115 


ii6  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

mass  of  yellow  nuggets,  while  his  friends  waited  for 
him  to  speak.    Finally  he  sighed  heavily. 

"Poor  Covington !  It  was  no  fancy  of  his,  as  we 
had  come  to  believe.  The  result  is  tenfold  more  than 
we  imagined." 

He  stooped  and  examined  several  of  the  biggest 
nuggets.  Then,  standing  back,  he  looked  down  at 
the  scattered  riches  and  said: 

"All  gold !  There's  enough  to  make  us  rich.  No 
more  digging  in  the  mines  for  me  or  for  you  or  for 
Mr.  Crowell.  Dennis,  can  you  realise  our  good  for- 
tune?" 

"I've  been  trying  to  do  the  same  ever  since  my 
eyes  risted  on  it.  What  do  ye  estimate  it  to  be? 
How  many  thousand  millions?" 

The  miner  smiled. 

"Not  even  a  million,  but  enough  for  us  all.  One- 
third  is  yours,  one-third  Tim's,  and  one-third  mine. 
It  is  ours,  and  if  anyone  else  claims  it,  he  must  fight." 

"There's  where  ye  are  right,  as  me  friends  always 
remarked  after  listening  to  me  discoorse  on  my  sub- 
ject; but  how  did  it  get  there?" 

Again  the  miner  smiled  and  shook  his  head. 

"There's  only  one  who  could  tell  us — that  is  Cov- 
ington— and  his  lips  are  sealed;  but  it  is  plain  that 
the  gold  was  not  originally  here,  for  it  doesn't  grow 
in  that  fashion.  It  must  have  been  gathered  from 
the  surrounding  country  and  deposited  among  these 
rocks,  the  owner  intending  to  take  it  away  when  the 
opportunity  offered." 

"Do  ye  think  Covington  gathered  it  all  himself?" 


A  SERIOUS  PROBLEM.  117 

"There,  again  I  cannot  answer  you.  It  seems  to 
me  that  more  than  one  person  must  have  had  a  hand 
in  it.  How  all  this  wealth  came  into  his  possession 
is  a  secret  of  which  he  hinted  nothing  to  me.  I  be- 
lieve that  after  he  gathered  it  together,  or  someone 
gathered  it  for  him,  he  came  to  our  diggings  intend- 
ing to  lead  us  back  to  the  spot,  that  we  might  bring  it 
away;  but  his  health  broke  so  fast  that  he  saw  there 
was  no  chance  of  his  ever  being  able  to  help.  He 
made  the  drawing  before  he  left,  and  then,  out  of 
gratitude  for  the  kindness  I  had  shown  him,  gave  me 
the  paper,  which  never  would  have  done  us  any  good 
but  for  the  accident  that  gave  Tim  a  swim  in  the 
Lost  River.  But  what's  the  use  of  speculating  over 
a  puzzle  which  neither  of  us  can  ever  answer  ?  There's 
our  fortune,  and  the  all-important  question  is  what 
we  are  going  to  do  with  it." 

"Why,  what  would  we  do  wid  the  same  but  carry 
it  to  San  Francisco  and  put  it  in  the  bank  till  we're 
ready  to  take  it  East  wid  us  ?" 

"I  guess,  Dennis,  there  are  several  things  you 
haven't  thought  of." 

"I  shall  be  glad  to  listen  while  ye  name  them." 

"In  the  first  place,  it  is  more  than  a  hundred  miles 
through  the  roughest  kind  of  country  to  San  Fran- 
cisco. We  have  no  pack  animals,  and  even  if  we 
had,  they  would  be  quite  useless  in  a  region  without 
any  roads  or  trails.  That  stuff  is  too  heavy  for  us  to 
carry." 

"I  think,  under  the  inspiration  of  me  load  I  could 
tote  most  of  it  mesilf,  as  me  frind  Jim  O'Shaughnessy 


Li8  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

remarked  whin  he  took  me  on  his  back  to  carry  me 
over  the  Shannon." 

"Your  strength  would  never  hold  out.  I  might 
do  as  much,  but  Tim  cannot  be  considered.  So  there 
are  only  two  of  us  to  carry  the  stuff,  and  we  can't  take 
one-half  of  it.  Do  you  know,  my  good  friend,  that 
one  hundred  thousand  pounds  in  gold  weigh  about  a 
ton,  and  that  ten  thousand  pounds  therefore  weigh 
two  hundred  pounds,  which  is  a  bigger  load  than 
either  you  or  I  would  want  to  lug  through  the  moun- 
tains to  San  Francisco?" 

"There  is  no  hurry  in  the  matter.  What  odds  if 
we  gave  a  month  to  it?" 

"But  when  we  go,  we  do  not  wish  to  leave  any 
of  this  treasure  behind." 

"Not  so  much  as  a  piece  no  bigger  than  a  pea." 

"And  we  can't  take  it  all  with  us.  As  nearly  as 
I  can  say,  this  stuff  weighs  a  quarter  of  a  ton — far 
too  much  for  you  and  me  to  carry.  Besides,"  added 
the  miner,  who  saw  objections  that  had  never  oc- 
curred to  the  others,  "we  should  be  robbed  of  it  be- 
fore -getting  a  chance  to  put  it  in  the  bank.  As  we 
drew  near  San  Francisco,  we  should  come  upon  others 
from  whom  we  could  not  hide  the  knowledge  of  our 
prize.  There  are  a  good  many  desperate  men  in 
California,  and  we  should  be  sure  of  meeting  many  of 
them." 

"The  prospect  of  the  same  is  rather  plaisant  than 
otherwise,  for  I  feel  an  aching  for  a  scrimmage  of 
that  natur',  so  that  whin  ye  mintion  it,  it  has  the  force 
of  an  indoocement,  as  was  the  case  when  I  was  in- 


A  SERIOUS  PROBLEM.  119 

vited  to  Donnybrook  Fair.  But,"  added  Dennis,  re- 
moving his  cap  and  scratching  his  head,  "as  to  how 
we  are  to  wheel  all  this  goold  through  the  mountains 
and  up  to  the  front  of  the  bank,  that  puzzles  me,  as  I 
replied  to  the  taycher  when  he  asked  me  the  sum 
made  by  adding  two  and  two  togither.  Having  sub- 
mitted the  question,  I  will  lave  it  to  yersilf  to  answer 
the  same." 

"We  must  consider  it  together.  Let's  go  back  to 
camp  and  sit  down  and  talk  it  over;  we  shall  be  so 
near  these  rocks  that  we  can  keep  an  eye  on  them." 

Now  that  the  astounding  secret  had  been  solved, 
and  the  actual  existence  of  the  immense  storehouse 
of  gold  had  been  discovered,  the  miner  seemed  to  be- 
come his  old,  natural,  cool  self  again.  There  was  not 
a  trace  of  excitement  in  his  face  or  manner  when  he 
turned  about  and  led  the  way  through  the  fissure  to 
the  outside  world.  He  walked  with  his  usual  de- 
liberate step,  with  his  head  bent  as  if  in  deep  thought, 
and  paid  no  heed  to  the  others  until  the  smouldering 
remains  of  the  camp  fire  were  reached.  Then  he 
paused,  and  carefully  studied  the  principal  points  in 
his  field  of  vision,  after  which  he  refilled  and  relit  his 
pipe.  Then  he  sat  down  on  the  ground,  motioning 
the  others  to  do  the  same,  after  which  he  told  of  his 
experiences  while  away  from  them.  Ordinarily,  the 
account  of  his  meeting  with  the  two  Indians  would 
have  interested  his  listeners,  but  for  the  time  neither 
Dennis  nor  Tim  cared  for  anything  except  the  gold 
and  the  means  by  which  they  were  to  take  it  away 
with  them. 


120  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

"Nothing  is  clearer,"  he  said,  coming  back  to  the 
subject,  "than  that  we  cannot  carry  it  with  us  on  one 
trip.  We  might  load  up  with  one-third  of  it,  say,  in 
one  of  our  blankets,  suspend  it  to  a  pole  carried  on 
your  shoulder  and  mine,  and  in  time  work  our  way 
out  of  the  Santa  Lucia  range,  though  we  should  be 
likely  to  lose  it  all.  Perhaps  we  might  carry  more, 
but  at  the  best  we  should  have  to  leave  the  greater 
part  behind,  coming  back  after  the  remainder,  and 
making  two  trips  at  least." 

"What  is  the  objection  to  the  same?"  asked 
Dennis,  who  was  not  favourably  impressed  with  the 
plan. 

"There  are  several;  besides  the  great  risk  of 
being  robbed  of  our  load,  the  white  men  in  this  neigh- 
bourhood would  probably  seize  it  during  our  absence," 
said  Metcalf. 

"Why  couldn't  we  hide  it  somewhere  else,  if  they 
are  apt  to  find  the  place  where  it  is  now?"  asked  Tim 
£rowell. 

"There  is  sound  sense  in  that  idea,  but  it  has  its 
objections.  We  should  have  to  take  the  gold  some 
distance  away,  and  they  would  be  likely  to  detect  us 
at  work." 

"We  could  do  it  in  the  night  time,"  suggested 
Tim. 

"Which  is  just  when  they  would  be  on  the  alert. 
You  see,  it  is  those  white  men  who  cause  us  all.  the 
trouble;  we  haven't  seen  anything  of  them  to-day, 
and  yet  we  know  they  are  not  far  off." 

"But  they  will  grow  weary  of  watching  us  all  the 


A  SERIOUS  PROBLEM.  121 

time,"  said  Dennis;  "there  will  be  some  hours. when 
they  must  sleep,  and  we  can  give  them  the  slip." 

"The  plan  is  a  good  one,  provided  we  can  make 
sure  of  eluding  them ;  but  suppose  they  discovered 
what  we  were  doing,  and  kept  out  of  sight ;  we  should 
go  off,  believing  everything  was  right,  and  they  would 
slip  down,  and  be  beyond  reach  when  we  came  back 
after  what  was  left.  Then,  too,  it  isn't  going  to  be 
an  easy  thing  to. hide  so  much  gold  without  leaving 
traces  that  will  rouse  the  suspicions  of  others.  I  am 
sure,  Dennis,  that  you  would  be  in  constant  worri- 
ment  all  the  time  we  were  away.  As  I  view  it,  the 
chances  are  that  we  should  lose  the  treasure  we  at- 
tempted to  carry  off,  and  when  we  came  back  find 
none  remaining,  so  that  the  whole  thing  would  slip 
from  us." 

Dennis  shuddered  at  the  thought  of  such  a  mis- 
fortune. Having  tasted  the  joy  of  possession,  he  felt 
he  could  not  stand  the  loss  of  it  all.  Far  better 
would  it  be  if  they  had  departed  without  any  belief 
in  the  secret  of  James  Covington. 

"Ye  must  have  something  in  your  own  mind,  Mr. 
Metcalf  ?" 

"I  have  a  good  many  things.  The  most  practical, 
as  it  strikes  me  now,  is  that  you  two  should  stay  here, 
while  I  go  alone  to  San  Francisco,  carrying  a  number 
of  nuggets  with  me." 

"What  would  all  that  signify?" 

"I  should  leave  you  to  guard  the  gold  until  I 
return,  and  I  should  bring  back  two  trusty  men  with 
me;  that  would  give  four  well-armed  persons,  who 


122  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

would  be  strong  enough  to  carry  off  the  whole  stock, 
and  to  protect  it  too." 

"Can  ye  find  two  men  that  ye  dare  trust?" 

"I  could  find  a  score,  but  two  would  be  enough, 
for  we  should  have  to  divide  the  gold  with  them." 

"There  seems  to  be  enough  for  a  rigiment,  but 
I'm  that  selfish  that  I'm  anxious  to  kape  it  all  for  us 
three." 

"So  am  I ;  but  better  half  a  loaf  than  no  bread." 

"Why  would  you  take  the  nuggets  with  you?" 
asked  Tim. 

"To  prove  to  my  friends  the  truth  of  what  I  told 
them;  when  they  see  the  gold,  and  I  assure  them 
that  I  know  where  several  hundred  pounds  of  it  are 
waiting,  they  will  jump  at  the  chance  of  getting  it." 

"Why  couldn't  you  make  the  trip  several  times?" 
asked  the  boy,  who  was  keenly  interested.  "And 
when  you  had  done  it  twice,  then  we  could  all  go  to- 
gether, taking  what  gold  was  left.  Then,  too,  you 
might  be  able  to  find  Father  in  San  Francisco,  and 
bring  him  back  with  you." 

"If  there  was  a  fair  chance  of  doing  that,  I  should 
not  hesitate,  though  I  have  never  met  your  parent,  I 
ought  to  be  able  to  find  him,  and  instead  of  coming 
back  through  the  mountains  we  could  charter  a 
schooner  or  small  sailing  vessel  and  come  down  the 
coast;  that  would  be  a  great  deal  easier." 

"I'm  thinking,"  said  Dennis,  after  a  moment's 
silence,  "to  ask  ye  if  it  would  be  a  hard  task  for  ye 
to  reach  San  Francisco  by  going  through  the  moun- 
tains and  overland." 


A  SERIOUS  PROBLEM.  123 

"There  would  be  considerable  hard  travelling, 
but  I  should  not  have  the  slightest  misgiving  about 
reaching  the  town." 

"Mr.  Crowell  will  be  distressed  about  the  lad 
when  he  larns  of  the  wreck  of  the  steamer,  so  why 
not  take  him  with  you?" 

"Leaving  you  alone  to  guard  the  treasure- 
house?" 

"Do  ye  think  I  would  be  afeared  of  twinty 
thafes?"  asked  the  Irishman,  with  some  indignation. 

"You  might  not  be  afraid,  and  yet  it  would  be  a 
rash  thing  to  do." 

"And  besides,"  added  Tim,  looking  affectionately 
at  his  friend,  "Tige  and  you  and  I  are  going  to  stick 
together  to  the  end." 


CHAPTER  XIV 

SHIFTING  THE  DEPOSITS 

So  much  was  settled.  Whatever  agreement  was 
made,  the  man  and  boy  who  had  been  companions 
from  the  earliest  remembrance  of  Tim  Crowell  should 
remain  so  to  the  end.  There  was  pluck  about  the  lad 
which  neither  of  his  friends  suspected.  He  longed  to 
meet  his  father,  and,  though  he  joined  eagerly  in  the 
hunt  for  gold,  and  showed  an  interest  that  was  real, 
he  chafed  over  the  delay,  and  would  have  gladly 
turned  his  back  upon  the  promises  of  the  grand 
fortune  for  the  sake  of  hastening,  even  by  a  few  days, 
his  reunion  with  his  beloved  parent.  But,  as  I  have 
said,  neither  of  his  companions  suspected  this  fact, 
and  he  sturdily  kept  it  to  himself. 

Young  as  he  was,  Tim  saw  that  the  chances  of 
reaching  San  Francisco  under  the  guidance  of  the 
miner  were  as  promising  as  they  could  be  with  Met- 
calf  and  Dennis,  and  more  promising  than  with  the 
Irishman  alone;  but,  so  far  as  the  lad  was  concerned, 
he  was  resolved  that  nothing  should  separate  the 
two,  and  the  heart  of  Dennis  Murphy  glowed  with 
pleasure  and  pride  when  he  heard  the  brave  words 
of  his  young  friend.  He  reached  his  hand  across,  and 
warmly  pressed  that  of  Tim,  and  the  eyes  of  both 
gleamed  with  an  unwonted  moisture. 

124 


SHIFTING  THE  DEPOSITS. 

But  the  miner  was  too  earnest  in  the  task  before 
him  to  give  heed  to  any  sentiment  of  that  nature. 
To  him  the  most  prudent  course  was  that  which  he 
had  named — he  should  make  the  journey  alone,  and 
bring  back  two  friends  with  him.  Could  that  be  ac- 
complished, the  question  would  be  solved;  but,  like 
all  the  other  plans,  it  had  grave  objections.  He  could 
not  rid  himself  of  the  belief  that  a  hostile  party  of" 
white  men  were  in  the  neighbourhood,  and  that  they 
were  on  the  same  errand  as  himself.  By  some  means 
they  had  gained  a  partial  knowledge  of  Covington's 
secret,  and  were  already  close  to  its  full  uncover- 
ing. They  must  suspect  the  truth,  and  by  stealthily 
watching  our  friends,  would  learn  all  that  was  neces- 
sary to  know.  The  sole  obstacle  to  their  success 
would  be  the  single  man  and  his  rifle,  for  the  boy 
could  not  be  taken  into  account. 

There  could  be  no  question  as  to  the  courage  of 
the  Irishman.  He  was  to  be  counted  upon  to  defend 
the  treasure  to  the  last,  but  there  are  many  things  be- 
yond the  power  of  the  bravest  of  men,  one  of  which 
is  his  ability  to  defeat  a  much  stronger  force  than 
himself,  especially  when  the  advantage  is  wholly  with 
the  stronger  force.  Metcalf  thought  of  every  point. 
Suppose  Dennis  took  his  station  at  the  mouth  of  the 
rent  or  fissure  in  the  rocks,  and  defied  the  intruders. 
Probably  he  could  hold  them  back  for  a  time,  but  for 
how  long?  In  case  of  a  siege  he  would  be  without 
food  and  water.  The  chasm  being  open  at  the  top 
all  the  way,  and  the  walls  being  perpendicular,  it 
would  be  easy  for  them  to  crush  him  from  above. 


126  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

All  this,  and  much  more,  passed  through  the  active 
brain  of  the  miner,  and  led  him  in  the  end  to  modify 
his  plans.  He  would  make  the  northward  journey  as 
agreed  upon,  but  before  going  the  gold  should  be 
hidden  in  some  other  place.  It  would  seem  that  there 
ought  to  be  no  difficulty  in  doing  this,  for  the  nature 
of  the  country  offered  no  end  to  the  number  of  secure 
hiding-places,  and  they  had  only  to  use  ordinary  care 
in  order  effectually  to  conceal  all  traces  of  what  they 
had  done. 

He  told  his  friends  of  his  decision,  and  they  saw 
its  wisdom. 

"Most  of  the  afternoon  is  left  to  .  us ;  between 
now  and  dusk  we  will  hit  upon  the  right  spot,  and 
to-night  carry  the  gold  thither.  There  is  no  moon 
until  past  midnight,  so  we  shall  have  all  the  time  we 
want" 

"And  what  shall  we  do  if  we  find  they're  watch- 
ing us  ?"  asked  Dennis. 

"I  do  not  see  that  we  can  do  anything  but  wait 
for  another  chance." 

No  one  could  have  been  more  cautious  than  our 
friends.  The  miner  continually  scanned  every  part 
of  his  field  of  vision  for  signs  which  he  dreaded  to 
see,  and  he  was  vastly  relieved  at  his  failure  to  see 
them. 

"There  is  no  call  for  us  three  to  engage  in  the 
work.  Suppose,  therefore,  that  you  stay  here,  so  as 
to  avert  suspicion,  while  I  stroll  off  in  quest  of  a 
place  of  concealment  for  the  gold.  Should  it  happen 
that  anyone  is  on  the  watch,  he  will  not  learn  any- 


SHIFTING  THE  DEPOSITS.  127 

thing  from  what  I  do,  and,  of  course,  will  discover 
nothing  from  you." 

Accordingly,  Metcalf  sauntered  away,  taking  a 
course  that  led  him  to  the  left  of  the  mass  of  rocks 
among  which  the  yellow  nuggets  lay,  and  in  the 
direction  of  the  Lost  River.  He  was  so  guarded  that 
he  really  overdid  the  business.  Within  fifteen  minutes 
he  had  selected  the  spot,  but  he  carefully  avoided 
going  near  it  until  he  had  passed  to  and  fro  several 
times,  and  even  then  he  kept  several  paces  away. 

The  place  was  of  the  simplest  nature,  consisting 
of  a  number  of  boulders,  some  of  which  leaned  to- 
gether, and  were  tumbled  over  one  another  so  as  to 
offer  cavities  large  enough  to  contain  all  the  gold 
without  its  being  visible  from  the  outside.  This,  as 
you  have  noted,  was  not  the  case  with  its  present 
hiding-place,  for  had  anyone  happened  to  look  down 
into  the  chasm  from  above,  he  must  have  seen  the 
splendid  treasure  lying  below,  and  within  easy  reach. 
It  was  necessary  that  the  new  place  should  answer 
its  purpose  without  any  changes  of  the  exterior,  since 
that  would  have  been  sure  to  attract  notice. 

Satisfied  that  he  had  found  what  he  wanted,  Met- 
calf continued  his  stroll,  and,  making  a  long  circuit, 
came  back  to  his  friends,  who  had  hardly  removed 
their  eyes  from  him. 

"I  jedge  ye  have  found  what  ye  wanted,  as  was 
remarked  to  Garry  Sullivan  when  he  came  out  of  the 
scrimmage  so  battered  up  that  his  mother  didn't  know 
him." 

"Yes ;  it  was  not  hard  to  find.    All  we  need  to  do 


128  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

is  to  wait  till  it  is  fully  dark,  and  then  carry  the  gold 
to  the  new  place.  I  have  been  wondering,  Dennis, 
what  you  and  Tim  will  do  while  I  am  away.  How 
will  you  spend  the  time?" 

"How  long  do  you  expect  to  be  absint  ?" 

"I  can't  say  for  certain;  but  I  hope  to  bring  back 
my  friends  by  the  end  of  two  weeks,  and  possibly 
sooner  than  that.  The  days  and  hours  will  be  tire- 
some to  you." 

"That  depinds.  If  we  should  sit  down  on  the 
ground  and  do  nothing,  the  same  would  be  the  fact, 
though  the  starving  to  death  would  be  a  little  plisant 
variation;  but  Tim  and  mesilf  and  the  dog  can  find 
plenty  of  work  in  hunting  through  the  mountains. 
We  shall  have  to  do  the  same  to  get  something  to  ate, 
though  we  shall  have  the  fishing-line  to  fall  back 
upon.  Whin  we're  not  hunting  for  food,  we  can  look 
for  new  nuggets  of  gold." 

"It  seems  to  me  you  are  growing  miserly,  Dennis." 

"I  have  a  'spicion  of  the  same  mesilf — they  say 
it  is  the  same  wid  all  millionaires ;  but  it  sames  to 
me,  Mr.  Metcalf,  that  ye  are  right  in  obsarving  that 
the  goold  among  the  rocks  beyonst  has  been  took 
there." 

"There's  no  doubt  of  that." 

"Then  they  must  have  picked  it  up  in  this  part  of 
the  country,  for  them  as  did  that  wouldn't  carry  such 
heavy  things  very  fur,  whin  the  hiding-place  where 
they  put  them  is  not  as  good  as  many  others  near  by." 

"Nothing  could  sound  more  reasonable,  and  yet 
you  may  be  wrong.  The  peculiar  action  of  some  of 


SHIFTING  THE  DEPOSITS.  129 

the  many  streams  around  here — perhaps  the  Lost 
River — may  have  deposited  all  the  nuggets  in  one 
spot,  where  they  were  found  and  brought  to  their 
present  hiding-place.  But  what's  the  use  of  specu- 
lating over  what  we  can  never  understand  ?" 

"It  wasn't  specylation  I  had  in  mind,  but  the  idea 
that  it's  likely  that  bits  of  the  goold  may  be  picked 
up  among  the  strames,  and  it  will  be  plisant  em- 
ployment for  Tim  and  me  to  kape  up  the  hunt  for 
them." 

"You  could  find  no  better  means  of  using  your 
time,  which  at  the  most  is  likely  to  hang  heavy  on 
your  hands.  It  gives  me  relief  to  know  you  will  do 
that." 

It  was  hardly  dark  when  the  miner  renewed  the 
fire,  of  which  only  a  few  embers  remained,  and  the 
three  ate  the  last  of  the  mountain  sheep  which  Met- 
calf  had  shot  the  day  before.  Their  normal  appetites 
had  come  back  to  them,  and  all  were  in  high  spirits. 
The  miner  found  much  comfort  in  the  fact  that  none 
of  them  had  seen  the  first  sign  of  the  white  men,  who 
just  then  would  have  been  the  most  unwelcome  of 
all  persons.  He  began  to  hope  that  they  had  left  the 
country  altogether.  Tige  was  sent  on  a  long  ramble 
through  the  mountains,  with  orders  to  let  his  friends 
know  if  he  came  upon  any  strangers,  but  no  sound  of 
barking  reached  their  ears,  and  when  he  returned  all 
knew  his  search  had  been  fruitless. 

It  was  a  clear,  moonless  night  when  the  three 
forms,  with  the  dog  at  the  rear,  moved  as  stealthily 
down  the  declivity  as  if  they  were  entering  a  hostile 


130  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

Indian  camp,  and,  pausing  at  the  mouth  of  the  fissure, 
looked  around  in  the  gloom.  Nothing  was  seen  or 
heard  to  cause  alarm. 

"Stay  right  here,  Tige,  and  keep  watch,"  was  the 
command  to  the  dog,  as  the  miner  turned  and  led  the 
way  through  the  winding  passage  to  the  farthest  ex- 
tremity. There  being  no  roof  to  this,  it  was  pene- 
trated by  the  star-gleam,  though  not  to  the  extent  of 
revealing  anything  more  than  the  dim  figures  of  the 
three  to  one  another.  None  could  see  the  wealth  that 
lay  at  their  feet  waiting  to  be  garnered. 

The  two  guns  had  been  left  leaning  against  the 
rocks  outside — an  act  that  would  have  been  the 
height  of  rashness  had  there  been  reason  to  believe 
enemies  were  near — and  the  miner  carried  his  blanket 
with  him.  This  was  placed  on  the  floor  at  the  open- 
ing into  the  fissure,  so  as  to  be  well  clear  of  the  nug- 
gets, which  he  proceeded  to  scoop  into  the  middle  of 
the  cloth. 

"Now,"  said  he  to  Tim,  "fill  your  pockets  with 
all  you  can  carry ;  everything  counts." 

"Whin  I  was  a  broth  of  a  boy,  I  had  plenty  of 
pockets,  aich  wid  a  hole  in  the  bottom  as  big  as  the 
top,  but  I'm  thinking  it's  not  the  same  now." 

With  this  remark,  Dennis  stowed  away  all  the 
nuggets  he  could  conveniently  carry  about  his  cloth- 
ing. Then  he  stooped  at  the  same  time  with  the 
miner,  and  the  two  carefully  lifted  the  blanket,  in 
whose  hollow  nestled  several  scores  of  the  valuable 
deposits.  The  weight  was  astonishing,  and  showed 
how  great  a  task  would  be  the  carrying  of  all  the  stuff 


SHIFTING  THE  DEPOSITS.  131 

through  more  than  a  hundred  miles  of  mountain  and 
solitude.  Metcalf  took  the  lead  with  Tim  at  the 
rear.  Besides  what  the  boy  had  in  his  pockets,  he 
carried  a  couple  in  each  hand,  and  he  proved  he  knew 
their  value  from  the  tightness  with  which  he  gripped 
them. 

Tige  was  at  his  post  on  the  outside,  and  gave  no 
sign.  It  had  been  fully  dark  for  some  time,  when  the 
two  men,  bearing  the  blanket  and  its  precious  weight 
between  them,  moved  slowly  in  the  direction  of  the 
new  treasury  or  place  of  deposit.  It  was  not  far  off, 
but  before  they  reached  it  the  shoulders  of  both 
ached.  Metcalf  stepped  so  carefully  that  he  did  not 
stumble,  and  the  brief  journey  was  made  without 
mishap. 

"Here  we  are,"  he  said  in  an  undertone,  and  glad 
both  were  to  lower  the  burden.  Then  the  miner 
struck  a  match,  which  he  shaded  with  his  hands, 
while  peering  down  into  the  gaping  mouth  of  a  hole 
fully  a  foot  wide.  Everything  looked  right,  and 
swinging  his  end  of  the  blanket  into  the  mouth  of  the 
opening,  he  raised  the  other  end,  and  the  nuggets 
rolled  down  like  corn  into  a  hopper.  He  shook  the 
cloth  and  pinched  it  with  his  fingers  until  he  was 
certain  that  not  a  piece  was  left.  Then  he  flung 
down  what  he  had  in  his  pockets,  and  Tim  and  Dennis 
did  the  same. 

"Can't  anyone  see  that  from  where  we  stand?" 
asked  the  boy. 

"Let  us  try  it,"  replied  Metcalf,  who  struck  another 
match,  and  held  is  so  as  to  light  up  the  interior.  The 


132  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

three  leaned  forward  and  peered  downward.  Not 
one  of  the  nuggets  was  visible. 

"The  goold  is  so  heavy,"  said  Dennis,  "maybe  it 
has  broken  through  the  airth  and  come  out  in  Chiny." 

"It  has  slid  down  the  hole,  and  is  only  a  few  feet 
away." 

"There's  some  mistake,"  suddenly  exclaimed  Den- 
nis, hastily  searching  his  pockets.  "I  put  siven  lumps 
in  there,  and  took  out  eight.  They  couldn't  have 
growed  on  the  way." 

"You  forget  that  you  brought  one  with  you  which 
you  found  in  the  stream  of  water." 

"Ah,  ye're  right.  I  forgot  the  same.  How  is  it 
with  the  rest  of  ye?" 

"There  is  nothing  wrong  about  mine,"  replied 
Metcalf.  "I  stowed  six  away,  and  have  just  flung 
them  all  down  that  hole." 

"It  isn't  the  same  with  me,"  said  the  worried  Tim. 
"I  counted  six,  without  the  other  one  I  found  more 
than  a  week  ago,  and  now  I  have  only  six,  counting 
that." 

"Then  ye  must  have  dropped  one  on  the  way." 

"I  don't  see  how  I  could  do  that;  but  it's  gone," 
he  added,  searching  his  different  pockets  again. 

"What's  the  odds?"  remarked  Dennis,  indiffer- 
ently. "It  doesn't  amount  to  more  than  a  hundred 
thousand  dollars,  and  what  is  a  thrifle  like  that  to  us 
millionaires  ?" 

"We  shall  have  to  wait  till  morning,"  said  the 
miner;  "though  the  nugget  isn't  worth  a  great  deal 
compared  with  all  the  rest,  it  is  too  valuable  to  lose." 


SHIFTING  THE  DEPOSITS.  133 

The  three  threaded  their  way  back  to  the  golden 
cavern,  as  they  had  come  to  call  it,  and  speedily 
loaded  up  as  before.  Tige  still  remained  on  guard, 
and  our  friends  made  the  journey  so  carefully  that 
none  of  the  nuggets  was  missing  when  they  reached 
the  new  hiding-place,  into  which  the  precious  bits  of 
metal  were  dumped  as  before. 

Four  separate  journeys  were  made  to  and  fro,  the 
last  load  being  less  than  any  of  the  others.  All 
three  groped  around  with  their  hands,  and  the  miner 
struck  several  matches,  so  as  to  make  certain  nothing 
was  left  behind.  Then,  after  the  blanket  was  shaken 
clear  of  its  last  load,  he  lit  more  matches,  though  his 
stock  was  growing  small,  and  they  anxiously  peered 
into  the  chute  through  which  the  nuggets  had  been 
poured.  The  capacity  of  the  new  hiding-place  and  the 
slope  of  the  throat  leading  to  it  hid  everything  from 
sight.  Provided  no  one  had  seen  them  at  work,  the 
three  were  warranted  in  believing  that  no  living  person 
beside  themselves  would  ever  be  able  to  unearth  the 
secret. 

"We  have  done  all  we  can,"  said  Metcalf,  with  a 
sigh.  "To-morrow  I  will  leave  you  to  spend  a  fort- 
night as  you  choose  till  I  return." 

"Ye  will  remember  not  to  tarry  on  the  way." 

"Have  no  fear  of  that.  I  am  as  anxious  as  you 
to  land  this  gold  in  the  Bank  of  California.  As  soon 
as  it  is  light,  we  will  search  for  that  nugget  which 
Tim  dropped ;  but  you  must  school  yourselves  to  keep 
away  from  the  gold  until  I  come  back,  for  if  you  da 
not  your  actions  will  surely  betray  you." 


CHAPTER  xv 

"COME  BACK!" 

IT  was  a  curious  fact  that  the  only  one  of  the  three 
who  slept  well  that  night  was  Dennis  Murphy.  It 
could  not  have  been  due  to  his  rugged  health,  for 
the  others  were  similarly  blessed;  but  his  genial, 
good-natured  philosophy  probably  had  something  to 
do  with  it.  The  singular  part  of  it  was  that  Tim 
Crowell  should  have  been  restless  and  disturbed, 
since  it  was  the  first  time  there  had  been  anything 
of  the  kind  since  arriving  in  California.  With  him  it 
was  partly  caused  by  his  dog  Tige.  The  two  lay 
down  as  usual  near  each  other,  but  the  boy  had  not 
been  asleep  an  hour  when  his  canine  friend  sprang  up 
so  suddenly  that  the  jolt  awoke  his  master.  He  looked 
around  impatiently,  and  then  came  to  a  sitting  position. 
As  he  did  so,  he  saw  the  miner  on  the  other  side  of 
the  smouldering  fire,  also  sitting  up  and  looking 
enquiringly  at  him. 

"What  do  you  suppose  is  the  matter  with  Tige?" 
asked  Metcalf . 

"I  have  no  idea.    Here  he  is." 

The  animal  came  back  as  abruptly  as  he  had  left, 
and  assumed  his  position  beside  Tim,  with  his  nose 
between  his  paws. 

134 


"COME  BACK!" 

"Have  you  ever  known  him  to  act  that  wa) 
before?" 

"Once  or  twice,  when  he  was  a  good  deal 
younger;  Father  used  to  say  he  had  bad  dreams,  as 
cows  and  horses  sometimes  have." 

"I  wish  I  could  believe  it  was  only  that,"  remarked 
the  miner,  settling  back  on  his  blanket,  which  he  shared 
with  the  soundly  sleeping  Irishman. 

Tim  expected  to  sink  into  slumber  again  in  a  few 
minutes,  but  he  did  not.  He  lay  looking  up  at  the 
stars,  listening  to  the  soft,  almost  inaudible  murmur 
which  is  never  absent  in  a  vast  solitude,  thinking  of 
his  father,  and  then  of  that  pile  of  golden  nuggets 
not  far  from  where  he  was  lying,  and  vainly  trying  to 
woo  sleep.  Although  he  lay  close  to  Tige,  the  bodies 
of  the  two  were  not  in  contact.  In  the  profound 
stillness,  Tim  heard  the  faintest  possible  rustling,  and 
turned  his  head. 

Tige  was  gone  again.  He  had  tried  to  steal  away 
unnoticed,  and  he  did  avoid 'disturbing  the  two  men, 
but  his  own  master  discovered  his  trick.  Tim  lay  for 
some  minutes  asking  himself  whether  he  ought  not 
to  awake  Metcalf  and  tell  him  about  the  dog's  singu- 
lar actions.  He  looked  across  at  the  forms  of  his 
friends,  and  knew  both  were  asleep,  though  it  was 
not  likely  that  the  miner  was  resting  as  soundly  as 
his  companion.  Tim  decided  not  to  disturb  either, 
for  they  could  not  explain  the  cause  of  Tige's  rest- 
lessness, and  both  were  so  tired  from  the  labours  of 
the  day  and  evening  that  they  needed  all  the  sleep 
they  could  get.  For  that  matter,  so  did  Tim  himself, 


136  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

but  he  did  not  get  it.  Everything  was  still ;  the  blanket 
was  softer  than  the  earth,  and  yet  he  lay  looking  up  at 
the  stars,  thinking  of  many  things,  and  as  wide-awake 
as  when  he  was  swimming  with  the  swift  current  of 
the  Lost  River. 

At  the  end  of  an  hour  Tige  came  stealthily  back. 
Seeing  that  his  master  was  awake,  he  pushed  his 
cold  nose  against  his  cheek  and  nestled  down  beside 
him.  Certain  that  the  animal  could  not  leave  him 
again  without  his  knowing  it,  Tim  at  last  closed  his 
eyes,  and  did  not  open  them  until  the  sun  was  shining. 

His  friends  were  astir,  and  the  fire  had  been  re- 
kindled. Metcalf  was  preparing  a  couple  of  fish  for 
the  flames,  and  Dennis  made  known  that  he  had 
found  the  lost  nugget,  which  he  turned  over  to  Met- 
calf, who  had  reserved  a  couple  to  take  with  him  to 
San  Francisco.  They  had  examined  the  approaches 
to  the  new  hiding-place,  and  were  sure  that  the  sus- 
picions of  no  one  in  the  vicinity  would  be  roused. 

Before  Tim  opened  his  eyes  the  two  men  had  had 
their  final  talk.  Metcalf  told  Dennis  of  the  restless- 
ness of  the  dog,  though  he  knew  nothing  of  his 
second  departure  from  camp.  Had  he  been  aware 
of  it,  he  would  have  changed  his  plans  and  remained ; 
but,  unfortunately,  Tim  did  not  think  it  worth  while 
to  tell  him  anything  more. 

"I  still  believe  it  is  best  for  me  to  go,  though  the 
action  of  Tige  last  night  means  the  presence  of  some- 
body in  the  neighbourhood  who  we  should  much  pre- 
fer should  be  elsewhere." 

"It's  little  difference  that  I  obsarve  it  can  make 


"COME  BACK!"  137 

if  that  be  so.  Haven't  we  hid  the  goold  where  they 
can't  find  it  with  a  hundred  telescopes?  If  they  are 
yearning  for  the  plisure  of  making  me  acquaintance, 
it  isn't  in  me  heart  to  deprive  them  of  the  happiness. 
I'll  mate  and  trate  them  like  a  long-lost  brother,  but 
I  won't  talk  goold  with  them." 

"I  ought  to  be  satisfied,  for  everything  is  in  the 
shape  I  wished  it  to  be;  but  all  the  same,  I  can't  feel 
certain  that  it  is  the  best  thing  for  me  to  leave  you." 

"Then  stay,  and  have  done  wid  it." 

"No;  I'm  going — that's  settled;  and  I  shall  start 
within  the  next  half-hour,  but  I  shan't  make  what  may 
be  called  my  real  start  till  to-morrow." 

"Will  ye  kindly  explain  whether  it  is  a  joke  or 
are  ye  in  airnest,  as  me  cousin  remarked  whin  Phil 
McGuire  broke  his  shillelagh  over  his  head?" 

"You  see  that  mountain  peak  yonder?"  said  the 
miner  by  way  of  reply.  "It  is  almost  due  north  and 
about  five  miles  distant.  When  on  the  road  to  this  part 
of  the  country  weeks  ago,  I  camped  on  the  top  of  that 
mountain,  or,  rather,  a  little  way  from  the  top.  I'll 
do  the  same  to-night." 

"I'm  thinking  that  if  ye  travel  at  that  rate,  it'll 
take  ye  about  two  years  to  raich  San  Francisco  and 
come  back  again." 

"No;  from  to-morrow  morning  I  shall  not  lose 
an  hour.  From  daylight  to  dark  I  shall  travel  the 
best  I  know  how ;  but  I  don't  mean  to  lose  sight  of 
you  until  to-morrow  morning.  If  you  watch,  you  will 
see  the  light  of  my  camp  fire  on  the  side  of  that 
mountain  soon  after  dark  to-night.  I  will  make  a 


138  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

§ignal  to  you  by  whirling  a  blazing  torch  about  my 
head.  That  will  mdan  that  all  is  right  with  me,  and 
I  wish  you  to  reply." 

"With  me  voice?  I'm  af eared  I  should  strain  the 
same,  as  whin  my  cousin  shouted  to  his  brother  on 
boord  the  ship  that  had  sailed  two  days  before." 

"By  no  means,  for  I  shouldn't  hear  yqu.  If  all  is 
well  with  you,  wave  the  torch  up  and  down  in  front 
of  you,  as  if  you  are  beating  time  with  a  baton  or 
stick." 

"And  if  all  is  wrong,  which  I  don't  believe  can  be 
the  case?" 

"Then  make  the  same  signal  that  I  do.  Whirl 
the  torch  three  times  about  your  head  in  one  direction, 
and  then  three  times  back  again.  Am  I  understood?" 

"Of  coorse.  Why  wouldn't  ye  be?  If  anything 
has  gone  amiss ;  if  everybody  is  standing  on  his  head, 
and  ye  are  wanted  to  set  them  on  their  feet  again 
without  the  least  delay,  then  I  will  circle  the  torch 
three  times,  say,  to  the  right,  and  then  three  times  back 
agin." 

"In  other  words,  if  you  make  such  a  signal  as 
that,  it  will  say  to  me:  'Come  back!'  " 

"I  can't  think  there'll  be  any  need  of  such  a  call, 
and  I  shan't  make  it  onless,  as  I  was  saying,  ye  are 
wanted  as  bad  as  bad  can  be.  If  ye  see  the  same, 
ye  will  know  there  is  no  mistake;  but,"  added  Den- 
nis gravely,  "permit  me  to  advise  ye  not  to  be  too 
careless  in  running  to  me  arms,  for  you  might  stumble 
over  the  top  of  one  of  the  mountains,  and  roll  to  the 
bottom  before  ye  could  check  yersilf." 


"COME  BACK!"  139 

A  half -hour  later  the  miner  shook  the  hands  of 
man  and  boy,  and  began  his  long  journey  northward. 
He  had  told  Tim  Crowell  nothing  of  his  misgivings, 
and  Dennis  did  not  think  it  best  to  worry  the  lad 
with  them.  The  parting  was  with  the  expression  of 
the  best  wishes  on  each  side,  and  in  a  short  time  Met- 
calf  passed  from  sight. 

Oppressed  by  the  misgiving,  which  increased  rather 
than  diminished  with  each  mile  passed,  the  miner 
pushed  forward  at  a  leisurely  rate — for  when  a  man 
has  nearly  a  whole  day  in  which  to  travel  five  miles,  he 
need  not  hasten,  even  if  the  way  is  rough.  It  may  be 
said  that  his  principal  work  was  to  scan  his  field  of 
vision  for  signs  of  the  white  men  who  he  knew  were 
not  far  off,  though  they  had  a  most  successful  way  of 
keeping  out  of  sight.  He  frequently  paused  in  his 
tramping,  and  scrutinised  the  country  behind  him ; 
but  the  afternoon  drew  to  a  close  without  his  having 
discovered  anything  to  cause  alarm. 

He  had  rested  and  slept  near  the  middle  of  the 
day,  after  making  his  meal  upon  a  fish — for  he  had 
not  caught  so  much  as  a  glimpse  of  any  game.  He 
saw,  with  some  uneasiness,  that  his  stock  of  matches 
was  getting  low,  and  he  would  have  to  be  extremely 
careful  to  make  them  last  to  the  end  of  his  journey. 

It  was  not  yet  fully  dark  when  he  began  climb- 
ing the  elevation  which  he  had  pointed  out  to  Den- 
nis Murphy,  but  the  stars  were  shining  when  he 
gathered  bits  of  wood  and  started  the  fire  agreed 
upon.  When  it  was  fairly  going,  he  took  a  long  piece 
of  pine  with  one  end  lighted,  and  swung  it  about  his 


140  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

head  several  times,  after  which  he  lowered  it  and 
waited  for  the  reply. 

It  came  sooner  than  he  expected.  He  saw  a  blazing 
torch  whirled  rapidly  from  the  right  to  the  left  in  a 
circle,  and  then  quickly  back  again.  After  a  brief  rest 
this  was  repeated,  and  then  again  for  a  third  time. 

There  could  be  no  mistaking  the  meaning  of  the 
signal.  Dennis  Murphy  was  saying,  as  plainly  as  the 
words  themselves : 

"Come  back,  and  come  in  a  hurry!" 


CHAPTER  XVI 

THE  RETURN 

STANDING  on  the  side  of  the  lonely  mountain  peak, 
Jarvis  Metcalf  looked  through  the  five  miles  of  in- 
tervening gloom,  and  saw  the  signal  of  his  friend  at 
the  distant  camp  fire,  calling  to  him  to  return  with  the 
least  possible  delay.  It  cannot  be  said  the  miner 
was  greatly  astonished,  for  somehow  or  other  he  had 
suspected  for  the  past  few  hours  that  that  was  the 
precise  signal  that  would  be  made  to  him.  More 
than  once  he  was  on  the  point  of  turning  back  with- 
out waiting  for  the  call,  but  this  seemed  childish,  and 
he  kept  on,  only  to  be  summoned  just  as  he  expected 
he  would  be. 

He  had  not  arranged  any  reply  signal  with  his 
friend,  but  that  ought  not  to  be  difficult.  Waiting  a 
few  moments  after  those  three  circlings  of  the  dis- 
tant torch,  Metcalf  waved  his  own  glowing  brand,  not 
doubting  that  Dennis  would  accept  it  as  word  that 
he  was  understood  and  there  would  be  no  delay  in 
obeying  the  call. 

Nor  was  there  any  at  first.  The  miner  imme- 
diately began  threading  his  way  down  the  mountain 
side,  and  pushing  over  the  rough,  uneven  ground  to- 
ward his  friends.  This  was  hard  work  in  the  dark- 

141 


142  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

ness,  and  would  have  been  dangerous  with  one  of 
less  experience,  for  there  were  chasms,  fissures, 
precipices,  depressions,  sudden  declivities,  and  abrupt 
turnings  and  twistings  among  and  around  the  rocks 
and  boulders,  where  a  mis-step  would  bring  disaster 
or  serious  injury,  and  not  impossibly  death.  No 
moon  was  in  the  sky,  and  the  starlight  could  not  al- 
ways help,  for  he  was  obliged  to  make  his  way  often 
through  dense  shadow;  but  it  must  be  remembered 
that  he  was  a  veteran  miner  who  had  roughed  it  for 
years,  and  who  had  tramped  over  this  ground  at  least 
twice  before,  so  that  it  was  not  wholly  unfamiliar. 

Naturally,  he  was  filled  with  wonder  and  all  man- 
ner of  speculation  as  to  the  cause  of  his  friend  call- 
ing him  back.  The  understanding  between  them 
was  that  the  Irishman  should  circle  his  torch  three 
times  to  the  right,  and  then  reverse  three  times;  but 
he  had  added  extra  turns,  which  must  mean  that 
haste  was  called  for  in  the  matter. 

Try  as  hard  as  he  could,  Metcalf  could  form  no 
satisfactory  explanation  of  the  action  of  his  friend. 
It  seemed  impossible  that  anyone  else  had  found 
the  new  hiding-place  of  the  gold,  and  it  was  equally 
impossible  to  believe  that  Dennis  felt  any  need  of 
help  in  holding  his  place  as  guardian  of  the  important 
trust.  Even  if  he  did,  the  miner  could  not  reach  him 
in  time  to  be  of  any  assistance. 

It  was  this  belief  which  prevented  Metcalf  from 
using  undue  haste,  and  thereby  he  escaped  more  than 
one  severe  mishap.  He  picked  his  course  with  pru- 
dence, and  when  he  came  to  a  stream  which  he  re- 


THE  RETURN.  143 

membered  well,  he  groped  along  the  bank  until  he 
reached  a  point  where  it  was  easily  leaped.  His 
memory  of  places  was  good,  and  numerous  landmarks 
told  him  he  was  following  quite  closely  the  back  trail, 
so  that  he  was  prepared  to  pass  numerous  obstacles 
which  otherwise  might  have  brought  him  trouble. 

Sometimes  he  caught  the  twinkle  of  Dennis 
Murphy's  camp  fire,  and  then  it  was  hidden  for  a 
considerable  way  by  intervening  obstacles.  The 
Irishman  was  evidently  keeping  it  going  vigorously 
that  it  might  serve  as  a  beacon  for  his  friend,  who, 
as  you  know,  did  not  feel  the  need  of  such  a  guide 
at  all. 

That  which  specially  interested  the  miner  was  the 
glimmer  of  a  second  camp  fire,  almost  in  the  line  he 
was  following,  and  less  than  a  fourth  of  a  mile  from 
where  his  friends  were  awaiting  him. 

"Another  proof  of  what  I  have  known  all  along," 
he  said  to  himself,  as  he  stopped  to  study  it.  "Those 
strangers  have  been  near  us  all  the  time.  They  saw 
us  visit  the  golden  cave  yesterday,  and  it  may  be  they 
hovered  around  last  night,  and  watched  us  when  we 
were  taking  away  the  gold,  though  it  is  hard  to  see 
how  they  could  do  that.  It  was  their  presence  near 
the  camp  that  made  Tige  so  restless." 

It  did  not  require  much  of  a  deviation  from  the 
line  he  was  following  to  visit  the  second  camp,  and, 
as  you  have  been  told,  the  miner  saw  nothing  to  be 
gained  by  hurrying  to  his  friends.  Accordingly  he 
turned  to  the  right,  and  headed  for  the  strange  light, 


144  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

which,  like  that  of  the  two  Indians  he  had  seen  some 
time  before,  seemed  to  come  from  among  a  group  of 
trees. 

"It  would  be  odd  if  it  proved  to  be  the  camp  of 
those  fellows,"  thought  Metcalf.  "I  am  sure  they 
are  not  up  to  any  mischief,  and  they  ought  to  be  a 
good  many  miles  from  this  spot." 

I  think  I  have  remarked  that  it  is  often  the  un- 
expected that  happens.  At  any  rate,  it  was  so  in 
the  present  case.  Metcalf  was  within  a  hundred 
yards  of  the  spot  he  had  in  view,  and  was  picking 
his  way  over  a  rough  place,  where  the  shadows  were 
not  very  dense,  when  he  lost  his  footing,  and  went 
over  a  bluff  like  a  flash.  The  fall  was  not  more  than 
a  dozen  feet,  but  he  was  bruised  and  shaken,  and 
when  he  picked  up  the  gun  which  had  fallen  from 
his  hand  he  found  that  the  hammer  had  been  broken 
off  short  to  the  barrel.  Until  it  could  be  repaired  it 
was  as  useless  as  a  stick  of  wood,  and  the  nearest 
place  where  it  could  be  mended  was  San  Francisco, 
more  than  a  hundred  miles  distant. 

You  cannot  imagine  the  miner's  disgust  when  he 
found  that  his  weapon  was  ruined.  He  angrily  flung 
it  down  at  his  feet  and  turned  to  walk  away,  when 
another  humiliation  came  upon  him  at  the  discovery 
that  he  had  lamed  himself,  though,  happily,  not  to  a 
serious  extent.  Sitting  down,  he  chafed  his  limb  and 
exercised  it  until  it  could  be  used,  though  the  exer- 
tion produced  considerable  pain. 

"After  all,"  he  added  philosophically,  "I  am 
thankful  I  didn't  break  my  neck.  This  ends  my  over- 


THE  RETURN.  145 

land  excursion  to  San  Francisco  without  someone  to 
bear  me  company." 

Groping  along  the  small  canon  for  a  little  way,  he 
came  upon  a  place  where  he  could  climb  to  the  level 
ground  above.  His  leg  still  hurt  him,  but  he  gave  it 
little  heed,  and  resumed  his  approach  to  the  camp  fire 
that  had  been  kindled  by  strangers.  As  he  expected, 
it  was  among  a  group  of  pines,  very  similar  to  where 
he  had  come  upon  the  Indians,  and  he  still  half-ex- 
pected to  meet  them. 

But,  as  in  a  previous  instance,  nothing  was  seen 
of  any  person.  The  fire  which  had  been  kindled 
must  have  been  a  large  one,  and  only  a  slight  time 
had  passed  since  fresh  fuel  was  cast  upon  it,  which 
was  burning  so  vigorously  that  the  circle  of  illumina- 
tion extended  a  number  of  yards  in  every  direction. 
The  sticks  were  first  piled  around  a  dwarfed  pine, 
whose  trunk  was  partly  burned  off  and  was  still  smok- 
ing; but  there  was  merely  the  camp  fire,  and  nothing 
more.  No  persons  were  in  sight,  nor  were  any  signs  to 
be  seen  of  the  recent  presence  of  any.  If  the  white 
strangers  had  been  on  the  spot  they  took  away  every- 
thing that  belonged  to  them. 

Still  they  might  be  watching  for  the  coming  of  the 
miner,  who  had  halted  in  the  gloom  until  he  could 
decide  what  to  do.  Although  he  was  without  firearms, 
he  felt  no  fear  of  harm,  and  finally  walked  forward 
to  where  he  must  have  been  fully  revealed  to  anyone 
near  the  place.  Glancing  here  and  there,  and  closely 
listening,  he  neither  saw  nor  heard  anything. 

"What's  the  use  of  my  lingering  here?"  he  im- 


146  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

patiently  asked  himself.  ''It  must  have  been  two 
hours  ago  that  Murphy  signalled  me  to  rejoin  him  as 
soon  as  I  could,  and  here  I  am  lagging  on  the  road,  as 
if  I  had  several  days  for  the  journey.  No  more  halt- 
ing now  until  I  reach  camp." 

He  kept  his  word,  and  within  the  following  fifteen 
minutes  reached  a  point  from  which  he  had  a  clear 
view  of  the  camp  and  of  his  friends,  for  Dennis 
Murphy  had  not  allowed  the  fire  even  partially  to  die 
out.  He  believed  it  would  help  to  guide  the  miner  on 
his  return,  and  he  was  beginning  to  wonder  over  his 
long  delay,  for  the  exchange  of  signals  between  the  two 
made  it  certain  that  they  understood  each  other. 

With  the  first  full  view  of  the  camp  Metcalf  was 
amazed  almost  to  speechlessness.  He  stopped  short 
and  stared,  as  if  doubting  the  evidence  of  his  own 
senses.  This  is  what  he  saw : 

Seated  on  the  flat  boulder  on  the  other  side  of  the 
fire,  where  the  miner  and  the  Irishman  had  sat  when 
smoking  their  last  pipe  together,  were  two  men,  one 
the  surly  fellow  in  a  slouch  hat  with  whom  the  miner 
had  exchanged  unsatisfactory  words  some  time  be- 
fore. Both  were  smoking.  Dennis  had  his  hands 
clasped  around  one  knee,  which  was  raised  so  as  to 
allow  him  to  lean  backward  at  ease,  and  was  talking 
in  his  jocular  fashion.  The  listener  even  heard  the 
familiar  "As  me  uncle  remarked  whin  the  load  of  hay 
tipped  over  on  him." 

The  man  with  the  sombrero,  beard,  and  glum 
manner  was  seated  alongside  of  him,  leaning  forward, 
his  elbows  on  his  knees,  one  hand  occasionally  re- 


THE  RETURN.  147 

moving  the  pipe  from  his  mouth  at  which  times  his 
shoulders  bobbed  up  and  down  with  mirth.  His 
posture  was  such  that  he  could  look  up  into  the 
countenance  of  the  Irishman,  whose  cap  was  shoved 
back  on  his  forehead ;  and  the  stranger  seemed  to 
find  his  chief  pleasure  in  looking  into  that  homely, 
good-natured  face,  while  listening  to  his  jests. 

On  the  other  side  of  the  fire  was  a  man  whom  the 
miner  had  never  before  seen.  He  was  tall,  good- 
looking,  and  plainly  dressed.  What  was  amazing 
under  the  circumstances,  this  individual  was  smoking 
a  cigar — something  almost  unknown  in  California  at 
that  time  outside  the  city  of  San  Francisco.  He  had 
assumed  an  easy,  lolling  posture,  and  a  part  of  the 
time  listened  to  the  jokes  of  the  Irishman,  now  and 
then  laughing,  but  giving  most  of  his  attention  to 
Tim  Crowell.  He  reclined  on  his  side,  his  body  partly 
held  up  by  his  elbow  resting  on  the  ground,  and  the 
gleam  of  his  white  teeth  showed  through  his  beard 
when  he  smiled  upon  the  boy  and  talked  with  him. 

Having  looked  upon  this  singular  picture  for 
several  minutes,  Miner  Metcalf  decided  to  go  forward 
and  find  out  what  it  all  meant. 


You  have  learned  how  Dennis  Murphy  and  Tim 
Crowell,  not  forgetting  the  dog  Tige,  were  left  to 
themselves  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Lost  River,  and 
nearer  still  to  the  golden  cave,  where  they  expected 
to  remain  for  a  fortnight  until  the  miner,  Jarvis  Met- 
calf,  should  bring  a  couple  of  friends  to  help  carry 
away  the  treasure  of  golden  nuggets. 

The  hours  and  days  would  have  proved  very  tire- 
some to  the  two  but  for  their  intention  of  spending 
as  little  time  as  possible  in  idleness.  They  did  not 
mean  to  venture  far  from  the  spot,  either  in  quest 
of  game  or  for  other  bits  of  precious  metal.  They 
had  a  wonderful  abundance  of  the  latter,  but  it  would 
be  pleasant  to  hunt  for  more.  Dennis  smoked  his  pipe 
for  some  time  in  silence,  and  then  said : 

"We  may  as  well  make  a  start,  me  boy.  Ye  can 
do  as  befoore — take  one  coorse  while  I  follow  another, 
wid  care  not  to  get  too  far  apart,  and  coming  back 
here  before  night.  Me  matdies  and  'bacca  be  running 
low,  and  we'll  cover  up  these  ashes,  so  that  the  embers 
can  be  used  when  we  come  together  again." 

This  precaution  was  taken,  and  then  the  two 
separated,  the  boy  going  in  a  northerly  direction, 

148 


CONCLUSION.  149 

while  his  friend  turned  to  the  southward.  Tige,  of 
course,  went  with  his  young  master,  who  had  in  view 
one, of  the  small  streams,  similar  to  those  already  de- 
scribed, several  of  which  he  had  searched  without  any 
results. 

It  was  a  third  of  a  mile  to  the  water  which  dashed 
down  the  side  of  the  mountain,  and  wound  its  way 
through  a  valley,  finally  joining  the  Lost  River  at  some 
remote  point,  and  so,  in  time,  reaching  the  ocean. 
Tige  knew  the  purpose  of  his  master,  and  galloped  in 
front  until  he  reached  the  brook,  where  he  stopped  and 
waited  for  the  boy  to  direct  him  what  next  to  do. 

"Go  up-stream/'  said  he ;  "and  when  you  find  any- 
thing, let  me  know ;  I'll  do  the  same  with  you." 

Off  went  the  dog,  frolicking  and  in  high  spirits, 
while  Tim  turned  the  other  way  and  resumed  his 
hunt  for  that  which,  it  must  be  confessed,  he  was  not 
very  anxious  to  find.  It  would  have  been  otherwise 
but  for  his  memory  of  what  was  hidden  in  that 
hollow  place  among  the  boulders  not  far  off.  He 
had  searched  only  a  short  time,  however,  when  he 
heard  several  short  barks  from  Tige. 

"Can  it  be  he  has  found  something  already?"  the 
boy  asked  himself,  turning  about  and  hastening  to  the 
spot  whence  came  the  signals. 

He  found  his  comrade  waiting  for  him  on  the  edge 
of  the  stream,  seemingly  impatient  over  the  slowness 
of  the  lad,  who  stepped  to  his  side  and  peered  into  the 
crystal  current.  He  saw  nothing  except  the  brown 
rock  and  whitish  pebbles  strewn  over  the  bottom.  He 
looked  again,  but  everything  was  as  usual. 


ISO  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

"Why,  Tige,  there's  nothing  there." 

The  dog  whirled  about  and  galloped  a  couple  of 
rods,  when  he  again  paused  with  his  nose  pointing 
into  the  stream,  and  barked  two  or  three  times  as 
before.  Tim  ran  after  him,  and  once  more  peered  into 
the  water,  but  was  disappointed. 

"What  do  you  mean,  Tige  ?" 

Again  the  canine,  by  way  of  answer,  repeated  his 
performance.  Tim  understood  it  now.  A  dog  is  as 
fond  of  fun  as  a  boy.  Tige  hadn't  discovered  a  sign 
of  gold.  He  wanted  to  have  some  sport  with  his 
master,  and  was  having  it. 

"I'll  pay  you  for  that,  you  rascal !" 

He  made  a  dive  for  Tige,  but  the  dog  whisked 
beyond  reach,  turned  about  and  faced  him,  saying 
plainly  by  his  actions : 

"Let's  have  a  frolic.  What's  the  use  of  hunting 
for  wealth  when  we  have  all  we  want  ?" 

This  time  Tige  allowed  himself  to  be  caught,  and 
the  two  rolled  over  the  ground,  hitting  and  clawing  at 
each  other  without  the  least  harm.  They  had  grand 
sport,  which  the  one  enjoyed  as  much  as  the  other. 
It  was  a  relief  from  the  strain  of  the  previous  day  or 
two,  and  Tim  Crowell  proved  that  he  could  take  a 
joke  as  well  as  give  it.  Panting  and  laughing  with 
his  exertion,  he  finally  straightened  up. 

"You  got  the  better  of  me  that  time,  but  you 
can't  fool  me  again." 

"Why,  helloa,  Tim!" 

The  boy  turned  suddenly,  and  there,  hardly  a  dozen 
paces  distant,  smilingly  surveying  the  couple,  stood  a 


CONCLUSION.  151 

tall,  fine-looking  man.  Tim  gave  him  one  quick, 
hurried  glance,  and  then  dashed  headlong  towards  him, 
exclaiming: 

"Why,  Father,  where  did  you  come  from  ?" 

And  the  next  instant  he  was  clasped  in  the  arms 
of  his  happy  parent.  They  kissed  each  other,  fondly 
embraced,  and  both  talked  so  fast  for  some  minutes 
that  neither  understood  what  was  said.  Finally,  when 
both  became  calmer,  the  father  spoke: 

"I  have  been  looking  for  you  for  several  days.  I 
only  suspected  last  night  that  you  were  in  this  part  of 
the  world.  Where's  Dennis  ?" 

"Not  far  off.  Let's  go  back  to  camp,  and  I'll  call 
him." 

"And  there's  Tige,  too.    Bless  the  faithful  fellow !" 

The  man  had  to  push  away  the  dog,  who  was 
showing  his  delight  by  leaping  all  over  him  and  almost 
dragging  him  to  the  ground.  He  shook  the  paw  of 
the  animal,  patted  his  head,  and  at  last  had  to  com- 
mand him  sternly  to  behave  himself.  Tige  tried  to 
obey,  but  could  not  do  so  all  the  time.  On  their  way 
back  to  camp  he  broke  all  bounds  more  than  once,  and 
leaped  over  and  around  the  man,  whom  he  loved  with 
an  affection  hardly  second  to  that  felt  for  the  boy. 

At  the  moment  of  starting  Tim  emitted  several  of 
his  resounding  blasts,  which  the  Irishman  heard,  and 
turned  his  steps  towards  camp,  reaching  there  only  a 
few  minutes  after  his  employer  and  friend.  I  need  not 
say  that  the  meeting  between  the  two  was  of  the  happi- 
est nature.  Dennis  remarked  that  it  reminded  him  of 


152  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

the  welcome  with  which  the  young  ladies  of  his 
acquaintance  always  greeted  him. 

When  the  flurry  was  over,  the  three  sat  down, 
and  Mr.  Crowell  explained  how  it  had  all  come  about. 

"I  did  not  know  on  which  steamer  to  expect  you," 
said  he,  "but  I  hit  the  time  pretty  close.  When  news 
came  of  the  loss  of  the  Golden  Gate,  you  can  under- 
stand my  anguish  of  mind,  but  the  steamer  which 
brought  the  news  brought  also  Captain  Bel  ford  and  the 
surviving  passengers.  I  learned  how  it  was  that  you 
and  Tim  were  left  behind  on  the  coast,  more  than  a 
hundred  miles  to  the  southward.  This  was  a  gracious 
relief,  for  it  showed  you  were  both  alive,  not  forgetting 
Tige,  and  the  next  question  was  as  to  how  you  were  to 
reach  San  Francisco.  There  was  a  possibility  of  your 
being  picked  up,  unless  you  struck  into  the  interior,  and 
it  was  not  impossible  for  you  to  travel  the  distance 
overland.  But  I  was  uneasy ;  it  did  not  seem  probable 
that  any  steamer  would  pay  heed  to  you,  and  since  you 
were  both  strangers  to  the  country,  you  were  likely  to 
have  a  hard  time  of  it,  making  your  way  through  the 
mountains,  where  you  would  be  exposed  to  accident, 
not  forgetting  that  the  Indians  sometimes  make  trouble. 

"When  I  learned  that  you  had  only  one  gun  apiece, 
I  decided  to  try  to  hunt  you  up.  The  only  way  to  do 
this  was  to  go  down  the  coast  to  the  place  of  the  wreck 
and  make  my  search.  After  looking  about  San  Fran- 
cisco I  found  a  Captain  Spencer,  the  owner  of  a 
schooner  engaged  in  trading  with  Mexico,  whom  I 
hired  at  the  rate  of  twenty  dollars  a  day  during  the 
whole  time  of  his  engagement,  to  take  me  on  this  hunt. 


CONCLUSION.  153 

"He  had  a  crew  of  three  men,  but  two  had  left  for 
the  diggings,  and  the  only  one  remaining  was  a  big 
negro  by  the  name  of  Pete.  I  agreed  to  act  as  one  of 
the  crew,  and  brought  with  me  an  old  friend  who  had 
worked  in  the  mines  with  me  for  several  months.  He 
is  a  New  Englander,  named  Dick  Barwis-^-a  glum, 
reserved  fellow,  but  as  faithful  and  honest  as  daylight. 
So  the  bargain  was  made,  and  the  little  Albatross 
started  southward  with  us  four  on  board.  As  you 
must  have  learned,  there  is  no  fear  of  bad  weather  at 
this  time  of  year,  and  since  Barwis  knew  something 
about  ships,  the  schooner  was  well  manned. 

"Now  it  was  impossible,  even  after  the  closest 
enquiries,  to  fix  upon  the  precise  spot  where  the  Golden 
Gate  went  down,  but  we  struck  it  pretty  well.  Captain 
Spencer  ran  as  close  in  as  was  prudent,  and  anchored, 
while  Barwis  and  I  landed  and  began  our  search.  We 
scanned  the  shore  for  signs  of  you,  hoping  you  had 
started  a  fire,  but  we  discovered  nothing.  It  seems 
that  we  were  too  far  north." 

"When  did  ye  arrive?"  asked  Dennis. 

"Only  a  few  days  ago.  It  was  some  time  before 
I  could  make  up  my  mind  as  to  the  best  thing  to  do, 
and  it  took  a  few  more  days  to  complete  my  arrange- 
ments with  Captain  Spencer." 

"Mr.  Metcalf  and  mesilf  took  a  look  at  the  ocean 
siveral  times,  and  obsarving  nothing,  gave  it  no  further 
thought,  which  explains  why  we  didn't  see  ye,  as  me 
uncle  remarked  whin  he  found  that  the  man  he  was 
looking  for  in  Dublin  had  sailed  for  Ameriky  two 
wakes  before." 


154  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

"I  thought  it  most  probable  that  you  would  keep 
near  the  coast,  and  arranged  with  Barwis  that  I  should 
roam  up  and  down  it,  while  he  went  further  inland. 
He  was  to  let  me  know  his  whereabouts  each  day  by 
means  of  the  smoke  from  his  camp  fire,  and  if  he  made 
any  discovery,  we  agreed  upon  the  means  by  which  he 
was  to  signal  it. 

"I  may  say  that  Barwis  is  an  odd  individual.  Some- 
times he  is  bright  and  lively,  and  then  he  will  go  for 
a  whole  day  without  speaking  a  word.  He  had  never 
seen  either  of  you,  but  he  ought  not  to  have  mistaken 
you  at  the  first  glance,  for  he  knew  that  one  of  those 
whom  we  were  hunting  was  a  boy,  and  that  he  had  a 
big  dog  with  him.  Yet  from  what  he  told  me  this 
morning,  he  had  seen  both  you  and  your  friend  with- 
out making  enquiries  or  seeming  to  suspect  the  truth. 
Yesterday  for  the  first  time  he  caught  sight  of  the  dog, 
and  soon  after  saw  Tim.  Then  he  signalled  to  me  that 
he  had  news,  and  I  hurried  to  him." 

"Where  is  he  now  ?"  asked  Tim. 

"Not  far  off.    He  will  be  here  before  long." 

"When  did  ye  arrive  in  these  parts?" 

"I  had  such  a  long  way  to  travel,  and  it  was  so 
dangerous  during  the  night  that  I  camped  out  till 
morning;  then  I  took  a  fresh  start,  and  joined  Barwis, 
who  decided  to  wait  where  he  was  while  I  came 
forward.  I  soon  caught  sight  of  Tim  and  Tige,  and 
that,  I  believe,  is  about  all  that  is  necessary  to  tell 
you.  Now  let  me  hear  your  story." 

Dennis,  aided  by  the  prompting  of  Tim,  told  their 
whole  experience  from  the  day  they  left  New  York 


CONCLUSION.  155 

down  to  the  present  moment.  He  omitted  all  refer- 
ence, however,  to  the  great  secret  that  had  made  three 
persons  rich.  Loyalty  to  the  absent  Metcalf  seemed 
to  require  this,  and  when  Tim  would  have  told  the 
story,  a  wink  from  the  Irishman  was  sufficient  to  close 
his  lips. 

"What  a  fortunate  thing  that  your  friend  agreed 
to  signal  to  you  to-night,  for  it  will  enable  you  to  call 
him  back  again.  It  was  providential." 

"And  won't  he  wonder  whin  he  obsarves  me  sig- 
nal !"  exclaimed  Dennis,  who  forgot  that  he  had  failed 
to  account  for  this  seemingly  strange  departure  of  one 
of  their  number.  Perhaps  Mr.  Crowell  was  not  so 
blind  as  he  and  Tim  supposed,  though  it  was  impossible 
that  he  should  suspect  the  whole  truth. 

The  glum,  silent  Dick  Barwis  walked  out  from  the 
clump  of  trees  early  in  the  afternoon  and  joined  the 
group.  It  must  have  been  one  of  his  cheerful  days, 
for  he  was  in  the  best  of  moods,  and  expressed  his 
delight  at  the  happy  outcome  of  the  peculiar  hunt.  It 
is  more  than  probable  that  the  genial  good  nature  of 
Dennis  Murphy  kindled  a  glow  in  his  moody  heart,  for 
Barwis  took  to  the  Irishman  from  the  first,  while  he, 
on  his  side,  seemed  to  form  an  odd  fondness  for  him. 

You  have  learned  how  Dennis  and  Metcalf  sig- 
nalled to  each  other  across  the  five  miles  of  darkness, 
and  of  the  mishaps  that  befell  the  miner  on  his  return. 
To  guard  against  the  possibility  of  his  going  astray,  the 
camp  fire  was  not  only  kept  at  a  blazing,  vigorous  point, 
but  Barwis  renewed  his  own,  feeling  that  the  miner 
could  not  fail  to  note  one  of  them  at  least.  He  would 


156  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

not  await  the  arrival  of  Metcalf,  but  came  back  to 
his  friends,  for  he  wished  to  listen  to  some  more  of 
the  jovialities  of  the  witty  Irishman. 

It  was  clear  to  Dennis  and  Tim  that  neither  of  these 
men  knew  anything  about  the  treasure  reposing  among 
the  boulders  a  short  distance  away.  All  the  signalling 
by  means  of  smoke  and  the  mysterious  movements 
referred  only  to  Crowell  and  Barwis  themselves,  with 
no  reference  to  the  little  party  that  was  filled  with 
misgivings.  This  statement  completes  the  illustration 
of  the  ease  with  which  an  ingenious  theory  may  be 
built  up,  when  it  has  not  so  much  as  a  grain  of  sand 
for  its  foundation.  Metcalf  and  Murphy  had  been 
wholly  wrong  from  the  beginning  regarding  both  the 
Indians  and  the  white  men  who  were  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood. The  removal  of  the  gold  was  useless,  and 
no  one  besides  them  and  Tim  dreamed  of  the  momen- 
tous secret. 

In  the  midst  of  their  lively  conversation,  Metcalf 
the  miner  walked  forward  from  the  gloom,  slightly 
limping  from  his  hurt,  and  greeted  the  company,  to 
whom  he  was  introduced  by  Dennis  Murphy.  The 
host  had  not  forgotten  to  provide  an  evening  meal, 
of  which  all  had  partaken,  not  knowing  when  to  expect 
the  coming  of  their  new  friend.  He  ate  sparingly,  for 
he  had  little  appetite.  He  soon  saw  that  Crowell  and 
Barwis  knew  nothing  of  the  hidden  treasure,  and  it 
was  his  pleasure  to  tell  them  the  story  after  the  repast 
was  finished  and  his  pipe  had  been  lighted.  It  need  not 
be  said  that  the  recital  caused  excitement  to  the  two 


CONCLUSION.  157 

listeners,  to  whom  the  revelation  was  an  astounding 
one. 

"I  saw  there  must  be  some  strong  reason  for  your 
departure,"  remarked  Mr.  Crowell  to  the  miner;  "but 
since  Dennis  said  nothing  by  way  of  explanation,  I  was 
content  to  wait  till  you  were  ready  to  give  it.  What  a 
strange  and  amazing  good  fortune  has  come  to  you 
three !" 

"You  mean  to  you,  Father.    My  share  is  yours.'* 

"Av  coorse,  as  me  grandmother  remarked  when  I 
reminded  her  that  she  was  several  years  older  than 
mesilf." 

"If  you  please,"  said  the  parent,  with  a  smile,  "we'll 
say  yours  and  mine  until  you  reach  your  majority, 
when  it  shall  all  be  yours." 

"And  that's  another  way  of  saying  it  shall  be  al- 
ways yours,"  persisted  Tim,  who  would  not  be  denied 
the  sweet  pleasure  the  declaration  gave  him. 

At  this  point  Dick  Barwis,  who  had  apologised 
to  Metcalf  for  his  brusqueness  when  they  met,  showed 
the  sterling  stuff  of  which  he  was  made. 

"One  thing  must  be  understood:  every  particle  of 
this  gold  belongs  to  you  three,  or  four,  if  you  include 
Mr.  Crowell.  Not  a  penny  is  to  come  to  me,  to  Captain 
Spencer,  or  to  the  negro  Pete.  These  three  will  re- 
ceive the  pay  promised,  and  I  may  say  that  Mr. 
Crowell  will  have  very  little  left  from  his  earnings 
after  settling  with  us  all." 

This  simplified  the  situation,  but  it  was  not  ac- 
cepted precisely  as  offered.  The  final  decision  was 
that,  in  addition  to  the  regular  pay  to  the  three  out- 


158  THE  LOST  RIVER. 

side  parties,  each  was  to  be  presented  with  a  single 
nugget  as  a  reward  for  his  friendly  help.  It  took 
some  argument  to  make  Barwis  agree  to  this,  but  he 
was  forced  to  consent. 

The  element  of  fear  was  wholly  removed,  for  under 
any  circumstances  there  were  four  determined  men, 
three  of  whom  were  well  armed,  against  the  captain 
and  negro,  provided  either  or  both  of  them  should  yield 
to  temptation  and  try  to  rob  the  owners  of  their 
wealth.  It  may  as  well  be  added  that  these  two  gave 
no  ground  for  the  slightest  suspicion. 

On  the  morrow  the  removal  of  the  nuggets  was 
made.  Against  his  will,  Dick  Barwis  was  compelled 
to  accept  the  largest  Dennis  Murphy  could  find  in  the 
pile.  It  must  have -been  worth  several  hundred  dol- 
lars. 

The  gold  was  piled  into  two  separate  heaps,  care 
being  taken  that  not  the  smallest  piece  was  left  be- 
hind, and  one  of  these  piles  was  enclosed  in  a  blanket 
and  suspended  in  the  middle  of  a  pole,  and  end  of 
which  rested  on  the  shoulder  of  Dennis  Murphy,  and 
the  other  upon  that  of  Jarvis  Metcalf.  The  second 
was  similarly  supported  by  Mr.  Crowell  and  Barwis. 
Even  then  the  burdens  were  so  heavy  that,  strong 
and  muscular  as  were  all,  they  were  unable  to  travel 
far  without  pausing  to  rest.  Fortunately,  the  lame- 
ness of  the  miner  had  disappeared,  else  the  party 
would  have  had  to  make  two  journeys.  Tim  and 
Tige  walked  at  the  rear  to  watch  whether  any  of  the 
nuggets  dropped  out  of  the  blankets. 

It  was  barely  ten  miles  to  the  sea,  but  so  laborious 


CONCLUSION.  159 

and  tiresome  was  the  trip,  that  it  was  not  until  night- 
fall that  the  party  reached  the  coast,  and  communi- 
cated with  Captain  Spencer  by  signal.  He  sent  a 
boat  ashore;  the  gold  and  men,  boy  and  dog,  adjusted 
themselves  carefully,  for  the  craft  sank  to  its  gun- 
wales, and  while  it  was  yet  early  in  the  evening  the 
whole  precious  cargo  was  aboard  the  schooner  Alba- 
tross, which  lay  at  anchor  until  morning,  when  the 
sails  were  spread,  and  on  the  second  day  she  passed 
through  the  Golden  Gate  and  made  fast  at  the  primi- 
tive wharf.  Soon  after,  the  gold  was  deposited  in  the 
vaults  of  the  Bank  of  California,  and  thus  the  re- 
markable adventure  of  our  friends  was  brought  to  a 
safe  and  triumphant  conclusion. 

When  the  stuff  had  been  assayed  and  weighed,  it 
was  found  to  be  worth  a  few  hundreds  more  than 
thirty-two  thousand  pounds,  so  that  the  shares  of 
Dennis  Murphy,  Jarvis  Metcalf,  and  of  Tim  Crowell 
and  his  father  was  a  trifle  more  than  ten  thousand 
pounds — enough  to  make  them  comfortable  for  life. 
A  draft  for  two-thirds  of  this  amount  was  taken  by 
Mr.  Crowell,  who  with  Dennis  and  his  son  and  Tige 
sailed  homeward  by  the  next  steamer.  Metcalf  de- 
cided to  remain  in  California,  and  bade  his  friends 
good-bye,  the  parties  never  meeting  again. 

So  it  was  that  the  same  year  that  took  Tim 
Crowell  brought  him  back,  he  having,  through  one  of 
the  most  remarkable  experiences  ever  recorded,  en- 
riched himself,  where  thousands  of  older  persons 
struggled  and  toiled  and  suffered  in  vain. 

THE  END 


Motor  Boat  Boys  Series 

By  Louis  ARUNDEL 

1.  The  Motor  Club's  Cruise  Down  the  Mississippi;  or 

The  Dash  for  Dixie. 

2.  The  Motor  Club  on  the  St.  Lawrence  River;   or 

Adventures  Among  the  Thousand  Islands. 

3.  The  Motor  Club  on  the  Great  Lakes;  or  Exploring 

the  Mystic  Isle  of  Mackinac. 

4.  Motor  Boat  Boys  Among  the  Florida-Keys;  or  The 

Struggle  for  the  Leadership. 

5.  Motor  Boat  Boys  Down  the  Coast;   or  Through 

Storm  and  Stress. 

6.  Motor  Boat  Boy's  River  Chase;   or  Six  Chums 

Afloat  or  Ashore. 

7.  Motor  Boat  Boys  Down  the  Danube;  or  Four  Chums 

Abroad 


Motor  Maid  Series 

By  KATHERINE  STOKES 

1.  Motor  Maids'  School  Days 

2.  Motor  Maids  by  Palm  and  Pine 

3.  Motor  Maids  Across  the  Continent 

4.  Motor  Maids  by  Rose,  Shamrock  and  Thistle. 

5.  Motor  Maids  in  Fair  Japan 

6.  Motor  Maids  at  Sunrise  Camp 

For  sale  by  all  booksellers  or  sent  postpaid  on  receipt  of  75c. 

M.   A.  DONOHUE  &  COMPANY 

701-733  S.    DEARBORN  STREET  CHICAGO 


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